A Golden Love
by eveningstar1996
Summary: What would have happened if Sydney had turned around and gone back to Adrian instead of listening to her Alchemist beliefs? Nothing is easy, especially where Sydney and Adrian are concerned, and things become more complicated once a certain ex-Alchemist and magic becomes involved. Post-Golden Lily. [Currently on hiatus.]
1. Confessions of Love

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

Note: Most of this chapter is from the last chapter of _The Golden Lily_, but don't worry, I changed up some of it at the end. Hope you enjoy!

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Ch. 1 Confessions of Love

"Don't dodge this. You know what I mean. You've known how to drive stick for years."

His silence answered for him, telling me I was right, even if his face was hard to read.

"Why?" I demanded. Now I was nearly pleading. Everyone said I was so exceptionally smart, I could string random things together and make remarkable conclusions. But this was beyond me, and I couldn't handle something that made so little sense. "Why would you do that? Why would you act like you didn't know how to drive?"

A million thoughts seemed to cross his mind, none of which he wanted to share. At last, he shook his head in exasperation. "Isn't it obvious, Sage? No, of course it isn't. I did it so I'd have a reason to be around you – one I knew you couldn't refuse."

I was more confused than ever. "But… why? Why would you want to do that?"

"Why?" he asked. "Because it was the closest I could get to doing this."

He reached out and pulled me to him, one hand on my waist and the other behind my neck. He tipped my head up and lowered his lips to mine. I closed my eyes and melted as my whole body was consumed in that kiss. I was nothing. I was everything. Chills ran over my skin, and fire burned inside me. His body pressed closer to mine, and I wrapped my arms around his neck. His lips were warmer and softer than anything I could've imagined, yet fierce and powerful at the same time. Mine responded hungrily, and I tightened my hold on him. His fingers slid down the back of my neck, tracing its shape, and every place they touched was electric.

But perhaps the best part of all was that I, Sydney Katherine Sage, guilty of analyzing the world, stopped thinking.

And it was glorious.

At least, it was until I started thinking again.

My mind and all its worries and considerations suddenly took over. I pulled away from Adrian, despite my body's protests. I backed away from him, knowing my eyes were terrified and wide. "What… what are you doing?"

"I don't know," he said with a grin. He took a step toward me. "But I'm pretty sure you were doing it too."

"No. _No._ Don't get any closer! You can't do that again! Do you understand? We can't ever… we shouldn't have… oh my God. No. Never again. That was wrong." I put my fingers to my lips, as though I would wipe away what had just happened, but mostly I was reminded of the sweetness and heat of his mouth against mine. I promptly dropped my hand.

"Wrong? I don't know, Sage. Honestly, that was the most right thing that's happened to me in a while." Nonetheless, he kept his distance.

I shook my head frantically. "How can you say that? You know how it is! There's no… well, you know. Humans and vampires can't… no. there can't be anything between them. Between us."

"Well, there had to have been at one point," he said, attempting a reasonable tone. "Or there wouldn't be dhampirs today. Besides, what about the Keepers?"

"The Keepers?" I nearly laughed, but no part of this was funny. "The Keepers live in caves and wage campfire battles over possum stew. If you want to go live that life, you're more than welcome to. If you want to live in the civilized world with the rest of us, then _do not_ touch me again. And what about Rose? Aren't you madly in love with her?"

Adrian looked way too calm for this situation. "Maybe I was once. But it's been… what, nearly three months? And honestly, I haven't thought much about her in a while. Yeah, I'm still hurt and feel kind of used, but... really, she's not the one I'm always thinking about anymore. I don't see her face when I go to sleep. I don't wonder about-"

"No!" I backed up even further. I don't want to hear this. I'm not going to listen to this anymore."

With a few swift steps, Adrian stood in front of me again. The wall was only a couple inches behind me, and I had nowhere to go. He made no threatening moves, but he did clasp my hands and hold them to his chest while leaning down to me.

"No, you _will_ listen. For once, you're going to hear something that doesn't fit into your neat, compartmentalized world of order and logic and reason. Because this isn't reasonable. If you're terrified, believe me – this scares the hell out of me, too. You asked about Rose? I tried to be a better person for her – but it was to impress her, to get her to want me. But when I'm around you, I want to be better because… well, because it feels right. Because _I_ want to. You make me want to become something greater than myself than myself. I want to excel. You inspire me in every act, every word, every glance. I look at you, and you're like… like light made into flesh. I said it on Halloween and meant every word: you are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen walking this earth. And you don't even know it. You have no clue how beautiful you are or how brightly you shine."

I knew I needed to break away, to jerk my hands from his. But I couldn't. Not yet. "Adrian-"

"And I know, Sage," he continued, his eyes filled with fire. "I know how you guys feel about us. I'm not stupid, and believe me, I've tried to get you out of my head. But there isn't enough liquor or art or any other distraction in the world to do it. I had to stop going to Wolfe's because it was too hard being that close to you, even if it was all just pretend fighting. I couldn't stand the touching. It was agonizing because it meant something to me – and I knew it meant nothing to you. I kept telling myself to stay away altogether, and then I'd find excuses… like the car… anything to be around you again. Hayden was an asshole, but at least as long as you were involved with him, I had a reason to keep my distance."

Adrian was still holding my hands, his face eager and panicked and desperate as he spilled his heart before me. My own heart was beating uncontrollably and any number of emotions could have been to blame. He had that distracted, enraptured look… the one that he held when spirit seized him and made him ramble. I prayed that's what this was, some spirit-induced fit of insanity. It had to be. Right?

"His name is Brayden," I said at last. Slowly, I was able to quiet my anxiety and gain some control. "And even without him, you have a _million_ reasons to keep your distance. You say you know how we feel. But do you? Do you really?" I pulled my hands from his and pointed at my cheek. "Do you know what the golden lily truly means? It's a promise, a vow to a lifestyle and a belief system. You can't throw something like that away. _This_ won't let me, even if I wanted to. And truthfully, I don't want to! I believe in what we do."

Adrian regarded me levelly. He didn't try to take my hands again, but he didn't back away either. My hands felt painfully empty without his. "This 'lifestyle' and 'belief system' you're defending have used you and keep using you. They treat you like a piece of machine, one that's not allowed to think – and you're better than that."

"Some parts of the system are flawed," I admitted. "But the principles are sound, and I believe in them. There's a divide between humans and vampires – between you and me – that can never be breached. We're too different. We're not mean to be… like this. Like anything."

"You told me once that there are no victims here, that we all have the power to choose what we want," Adrian said, echoing words I had once said to him.

"Don't try to use my own words against me," I warned, glaring at him and crossing my arms over my chest defensively.

"Why?" he asked, a slight smile on his lips. "They were damned good ones. You're not a victim. You're not a captive to that lily. You can be what you want. You can choose what you want."

I laughed bitterly. "No, I can't. I _never_ had a choice. I belong to the Alchemists. I am virtually a captive to them. Weren't you listening to me?" I indicated the lily on my cheek again. "The lily is a promise to a lifestyle and belief system. It will _never_ let me go. And I have the duty to protect the rest of my kind from vampires. And I choose not to be with you. I don't love you." I will never be free and be able to make my own choices. I could never say these words aloud…Adrian, I love you.

Adrian's green eyes were glassy with emotion. I couldn't let him know what I felt. If I told him, I'd never be able to leave him. "I don't believe you."

I scoffed. "Because I kissed you back?"

He shook his head. "Because there's no one else out there who understands you like I do."

I crossed my arms over my chest and shook my head. "_No one_ understands me. And you're wrong. I don't love you."

"If you don't love me, then why are you crying?" Adrian whispered. "And don't deny your feelings for me. I know you love me."

I didn't realize it until I touched my cheek. When I pulled my hand away, I felt a tear on my hand.

He reached out to me, and the look on his face was so heartbreaking. I stepped away from him, and headed towards the door. It felt like I was ripping my heart out of my chest, and leaving it behind.

"No. This is wrong. There can be _nothing_ between us, Adrian."

I turned my back on him, and walked out the door.

Once I was outside, it took all of my strength to keep from collapsing to the ground in a fit of tears. I kept walking to Latte and sat in the car. If I let Adrian see me cry…no. I _had_ to keep control.

_You did the right thing_, the rational part of me said. _You can't be so close to _vampires _– let alone love a creature of evil. You're doing the right thing._ Tears kept sliding down my cheeks, despite my attempts to wipe them away.

But part of my last thought – _love a creature of evil_ – struck me as being wrong. The beliefs the Alchemists had drilled over and over into me from a young age…They didn't know how kind some of the vampires were. Yet we were told to regard all vampires as evil, no matter how kind or nice they acted towards us. We had to protect all of humankind from those…unnatural creatures.

_Not all of them are evil_, another side of me said. _Some humans out there – the ones that you're supposed to protect – are eviler than the Moroi could ever be. The Warriors of Light are proof of tha_t.

This completely went against everything I'd ever been taught, all the beliefs that I held. I could never love a vampire, a bloodsucking evil creature of the night. I would be punished in the worst way possible, probably something even worse than being sent to reeducation.

But all the Alchemist beliefs I'd been taught…not all of them were right. Some of those beliefs I'd held for my entire life were _wrong_.

I now jumped out of the car, and ran back towards the house.

Adrian looked up in shock, but he wrapped his arms tightly around my waist like he'd never let me go. I buried my face into his shoulder, trying to keep in my sobs.

"Why…why didn't you leave?" he asked, tightening his grip on me.

"Because…not everything they say is right," I whispered. "Not every vampire out there is an unnatural creature of the night. You're not…a bloodsucking evil creature."

Adrian pulled me into his apartment and shut the door.

"Don't ever leave me again," he begged.

"I won't," I whispered, holding him close to me.

He bent down, and kissed me again. This time, I didn't pull away from him.

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Reviews greatly appreciated! :D Also, I'm still thinking about what to write after this, so ideas are also very greatly appreciated!


	2. Secrets

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

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Ch. 2 Secrets

"Well, Sage," Adrian murmured, finally stopping his long kisses. My body protested at him stopping, but I didn't make any moves. "What do we do now?"

I knew what he was talking about. Now that we had basically given in a little to our feelings…what do we do now?

"We can't tell anyone," I said immediately. Fear flooded through me. I just hoped none of the Alchemists had been around when I'd returned with Adrian to his apartment. I could only imagine what they would do to me now. Was re-education all I had to fear now?

"I think we've both figured that out at least," Adrian said dryly, loosening his hold on me a little.

"And when we're around the others, we can't let any of them know about us," I continued.

I knew that I should've left this apartment ages ago, when Adrian first confessed his love for me. I shouldn't even be here right now. I should never have gotten myself into this situation in the first place.

"Jill's going to find out," Adrian pointed out.

Damnit. He was right. Because of the shadow-kissed bond that resulted when Adrian raised Jill from the dead, Jill could find out things about Adrian through the bond without him telling her. This was definitely something Jill would find out.

"I'll tell her not to tell anyone," he assured me, taking in the panicked look on my face. "You know she wouldn't tell."

I lay my head against Adrian's warm chest, feeling his strong, steady heartbeat under my head. "I should probably go back to Amberwood," I murmured.

Adrian sighed, and released me, kissing the top of my head. "Stay safe, lily girl. Maybe I'll talk to you in your dreams."

I stiffened. The rare element spirit allowed its users to wield phenomenal psychic magic that had been unheard of before Queen Vasilisa Dragomir had revealed herself to be a spirit user. Adrian was a spirit user, and one of his abilities allowed him to walk dreams.

Rose had once told me that dreamer and the spirit user were actually together, communicating long distances. Adrian had visited her in dreams back when Dimitri and I had been on the run to protect her from the Moroi authorities, when most of the Moroi world had thought she had murdered the previous queen.

One time, Adrian had used his powers to speak to me in my dreams. He'd asked me to help him enroll in classes Carlton he could get out of Clarence's. That had only been once, but it had terrified me. It wasn't right, to be able to use so much power. I'd felt like the taint of magic had clung to me.

"No," I whispered, shaking my head. "Please, Adrian. I would love to see you somewhere where it would be safe….but something that involves magic? I can't."

Silence stretched between us, and I could feel Adrian studying my eyes. "If you don't want me to, I won't," he said at last. "But even though you're scared of the dreams…I would never do anything to hurt you. The magic would never hurt you either."

"I know," I said, relaxing into the feel of his body. "But…when we're in the dream….I'm basically surrounded in vampire magic."

Adrian let out a slight sigh. "I promise I won't talk to you in your dreams unless you want me to. We'll meet again when Jill goes to Clarence's for her feeding."

I nodded, and he kissed my cheek. "I'll see you soon, Sydney."

"Bye, Adrian," I murmured, gently touching his cheek for a moment, and then turning to leave the apartment.

* * *

I was well back on my way to Amberwood when all the past events just crashed over me. My kiss with Adrian. His admission that he loved me. My acceptance of his feelings. I was _definitely_ no longer an exemplary model Alchemist. If my superiors got word of what had happened between us…

_And besides_, that negative little voice in me said, Adrian Ivashkov_said he loves you. How long will it last? He does like to party, and women…Always the women, even if he does give up his party boy ways_.

I told that negative voice to be quiet, and continued back to school, trying to ignore some of my nagging fears. Although I had not told him as much, I did love him. But why would he be interested in _me_?

When I finally arrived back at Amberwood, I parked Latte in the parking lot, and headed back to my own room, over on East Campus. I had my own room now ever since Angeline had been recruited to join us as extra protection for Jill. Jill posed as my "sister," and Angeline was our "cousin" for the cover story at Amberwood for why we all interacted with each other so frequently. Eddie and Adrian were our "brothers."

I was on the second floor, when I paused for a moment. I looked down the hall, and then back upstairs.

I sighed and walked down the hall. I stopped in front of a door and knocked.

Jill Mastrano opened the door. Her green eyes were as bright as always, but she seemed to carry an aura of sadness around her now. "Oh, hey, Sydney. Come in."

I now let myself in and closed the door behind me. "Just got back from Adrian's," I said, trying to sound as casual as possible.

"I know," Jill said. She didn't sound excited or happy, just saying it matter-of-factly. If she'd seen everything that had happened between me and Adrian - and surely she should've seen – she would've felt the positive emotions that were coming from Adrian. She looked like the world had ended, and now nothing mattered anymore. His emotions usually affected her, but for them not to affect her right now…

"What's wrong?" I asked, feeling sad as I looked at her expression. "Where's Angeline?"

There was that warning voice in my head. _Don't get too close to vampires. You're supposed to be strictly professional around them. They're not your friends_.

I ignored that voice again, and told it to shut up.

"She's…out with Eddie," Jill said weakly, sinking onto her bed with a miserable expression as she stared at what appeared to be a history textbook.

That explained it. A little before breaking up with Micah, Jill had told me that she had just noticed how good of a guy Eddie was, and how dedicated, brave, and confident he was. I had noticed that Eddie had harbored an unrequited crush on her, and he'd said as much to me, but in the end, he grew tired of liking someone he thought he would never have, and decided to try going out with Angeline.

What complicated things was that I had told Jill that Eddie could be interested in her when she'd told me she was starting to notice Eddie. She was absolutely crushed when I'd told her that Eddie and Angeline were dating, and now was perpetually miserable.

"Oh," I said softly. "Well…" I had no idea of what to do to be able to comfort her. I was smart in other areas, but interacting with people – and comforting them in times of heartbreak – was something I had had little experience with, being homeschooled almost all my life. Julia and Kristin, my first new friends at this school, had taken it to "educate" me in how people interacted with each other. I was getting better at it, but I still had no idea what to do in this scenario.

Jill smiled weakly at me. "I'll be fine, Sydney. It's just a little hard to get used to. Especially since Eddie was always complaining before about how Angeline kept flirting with him, and now they're…basically a couple. I'm just going to get some work done."

I could take the hint. She wanted to be alone right now. "Alright, I'll just…be in my room or at the library."

I was about to leave when she spoke again. "You know…Adrian's really happy right now. I've never felt him so happy before. It's nice that he's not drowning in his sadness and self-pity." Her voice was bleak though, like she was thinking of how everyone else around her was happy in love, but now she wasn't.

I didn't know what to say. "Oh, Jill. Maybe…" I trailed off. I wanted to say everything would be okay, but I didn't want to lie to her. I didn't know if everything would be okay. So I just gave up and decided to head for the security of the library, where everything would be safe and normal.

* * *

I yawned, and propped my head up on my hand. God, I was so tired. And I usually the one who was wide awake in class, compared to my other classmates.

Last night, Ms. Terwilliger, my history teacher, had dragged me out of bed to cast a spell after asking I was a virgin. Was it really that obvious that I was a virgin?

I still wasn't comfortable with the concept of humans using magic. She'd once said that humans had to wrest magic from the natural world. Magic wasn't something that was naturally part of us. She was a witch, and she claimed that I had a natural affinity for magic. I don't know if I did…but I'd seen some pretty interesting things that had happened when I did use magic. It had been useful in distracting the Strigoi a few months ago, and from escaping the Warriors of Light several weeks back.

Although, it hadn't changed my viewpoint on magic – that it really shouldn't be used by humans. Not that I hadn't used it…

Anyway, the spell I'd been asked to cast was a scrying one. Ms. Terwilliger asked me to scry for her older sister, and later, she'd told me I needed to learn magic for my own protection.

That was _not_ something I wanted to hear. Why would I need protection? Regardless, Ms. Terwilliger didn't elaborate, and I didn't understand why.

"Ms. Melrose?"

My head shot up at the sound of my assumed name and I came back to the present. "Y-yes?"

Ms. Terwilliger had raised her eyebrows at me. I really must've been daydreaming… "I was asking if you knew when the Roman Empire was founded, and how long it lasted."

I instantly said, "The Roman Empire began 27 B.C., but the Roman Republic that preceded it was founded in 500 B.C. The Roman Empire, if you don't count the Byzantium Empire, lasted for 503 years."

I noticed some of my fellow classmates were giving me wary looks. Even Trey, my friend and Ms. Terwilliger's class aide, wasn't looking too thrilled. I sighed to myself. I knew a lot, and I wasn't trying to show off, but it was hard to keep myself in check. I made a mental note to myself to not give so much information, although Adrian had once told me not to dumb myself down.

Ms. Terwilliger nodded. "Correct. Now the Roman ancient civilization had already been around before the Roman Republic was founded. Legend has it…"

I let myself drift off a little even as I took notes. The Roman Republic and the Roman Empire were some of my favorite history topics, but for some reason, I wasn't as interested today as I usually would be.

I was feeling unsettled by last night. Ms. Terwilliger's warning that I had to learn magic for my own protection…

Lunch finally arrived, and I could take a break from school. I was eating lunch with my family instead of Julia and Kristin today.

Jill didn't look happy about something. Following her gaze to the other side of our table, it wasn't hard to see why.

Angeline was laughing at something Eddie had said, her cheeks rosy. When it appeared no one was looking, Eddie gently touched her cheek for a moment before he let his hand fall.

To me, it seemed pretty obvious Jill liked Eddie. Although she wasn't doing any flirting, since Eddie and Angeline were now…well, for lack of a better word…together. They couldn't actively date, which was probably something that Jill didn't have to worry so much about.

Jill looked somewhat relieved when Eddie and Angeline finally left, which just left the two of us alone at our table, but she wasn't happy still. "Why do you look so glum?" I asked.

Jill sighed. "Lia DiStefano texted my phone and asked if I could model for her again. I…said no."

That was adding even more to her misery. Lia loved Jill's model-perfect frame and gorgeous, ethereal features. Last month, Jill had walked in Lia's fashion show because the models wore Venetian masks, which would make it harder to identify the models. Lia had constantly kept bothering me to let Jill model again. Jill wanted to model too, but she understood it was for safety.

Then a few weeks ago, Jill revealed to me that she'd modeled for Lia in a magazine spread for her scarves and hats. Although sunglasses hid her face…it was easy for anyone who knew to look that she was a Moroi. So far, there hadn't been anything that we had to worry about in terms of safety…but who knew? I was still unhappy that Jill had modeled for Lia against my wishes.

I sighed. We'd discussed this numerous times, and Jill knew she couldn't model. Not until the rule keeping her half-sister, Moroi Queen Vasilisa Dragomir, on the throne was repealed would it be safe for Jill to be in public.

Jill's expression turned strange. Almost like she was…frightened. "And…I got this in the mail…I don't know who sent it. I didn't want to tell anyone else but you."

She pulled a folded note out of her short pocket and handed it to me. I unfolded it, and almost jumped out of my seat. My blood ran cold at the words in the letter.

_We know where you are, Princess Jill_.

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**Author's note**: So it took me a little while to think of what to write for this chapter...Still kind of stuck on what I could write for this story, and I'd hate to have to stop writing this. If you put some ideas of what you might like to see in your reviews, it would really help me a lot. Thanks for reading, and as always, reviews are always welcome :)


	3. Unexpected Dreams

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

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Ch. 3 Unexpected Dreams

"How…how on earth did you get this?" I demanded, staring at the note in my hand. Panic rose in me and I scanned the faces of everyone in the cafeteria for potential threats. Now that there was this threatening note…anyone could be an enemy. Even within our school.

I suspected the sender of the note had something to do with the Moroi dissidents who wanted to remove Queen Vasilisa from power. Since she was surrounded by guardians, it would be easier for her enemies to kill her half-sister and remove her from power that way. And the note had addressed Jill as "Princess Jill." The sender knew that Jill was here.

How could this have happened? A horrible suspicion formed in my mind about how Jill might've received the note. But...there was _no way_ they should've been able to figure out where she lived!

Jill looked even paler than she did normally, and that was really saying something. Her green eyes were filled with fear. "I was checking my mail today, to see if there was anything for me…and there was an envelope with my name and school address on it. I opened it…and there was that note."

This was terrible. After all that work we'd gone to hide Jill from her own people to protect her, she was now in danger. We had to protect her, and prevent a civil war from breaking out among the Moroi. I stood up and took out my phone. "I'm calling Eddie."_ Please, pick up your phone_, I silently begged as I dialed.

Eddie immediately picked up his phone. "Hi, Sydney."

"Come back to the cafeteria. We have an emergency. Jill received a threat in the mail."

There was an intake of breath from the other end. "Coming right away." _Click_.

He arrived, with Angeline in tow behind him. "Where's the note?" he demanded, his eyes warily sweeping the cafeteria.

I wordlessly handed it over to him. Jill was biting her lip, and playing with one of her light brown curls.

He turned to Jill, and for a moment, I could see his feelings for her reflected in his eyes. He still liked her a lot, even though he was now "with" Angeline, but he quickly put on his guardian face. "When'd you get this?"

"This morning," she whispered. "I wanted to check my mail and see if there was anything for me…but I saw that. I thought it was kind of weird, since not even my mom knows where I am. And the name on it read Jillian Mastrano. It was lucky the clerk didn't see it or a lot of questions would've been asked."

Jillian Mastrano was her real name. Well, she was now Jillian Mastrano Dragomir, but the point was clear – only her friends, and perhaps enemies for that matter, knew her real name.

Eddie's expression was hard. He turned to Angeline. "I want you to stay by her side at _all_ times. Even if she has to go to the bathroom. We can't just trust everyone around us, even if they're all human." Angeline nodded, her blue eyes serious.

"I don't share every class with Angeline," Jill pointed out. "But I think at the very least, you could give me self-defense lessons again."

Eddie hesitated, his expression torn. "I want you to be safe. But…"

"Angeline's main goal is to protect Jill from the Moroi dissidents," I pointed out. "Even so, I agree with Jill. You should probably resume basic defense classes with her in the hopefully unlikely event that she's taken away by force."

"Very well," Eddie agreed. "I'll start training Jill tonight."

"After sunset?" Jill asked, a slightly hopeful expression on her face. If she trained out in the sun, it would weaken her a lot. That was something we'd found out the hard way in the first few weeks of school, when she'd still been enrolled in PE.

Eddie nodded, and stood up. "We should probably head to class now," he commented.

"I need to get word to my superiors when school's over," I remarked, also standing.

* * *

As soon as the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, I ran out to the quad and whipped out my cell phone to call Stanton, one of my Alchemist superiors, to report on the threat Jill had received. I had no idea how she would plan to take action.

Stanton seemed very concerned. "Do you have any idea how anyone might've been able to find Ms. Mastrano where she is? Her current location was kept a secret, and I am sure none of the people involved in this would've leaked it. Ms. Karp and Guardian Belikov wouldn't have betrayed Ms. Mastrano's location."

I hesitated before I spoke. My next words could probably get me in a bit of trouble. "I _think_ I have an idea. A human designer wanted Jill to model for her…and the pictures ended up in the magazine."

There was silence from the other end for a moment. "Well. I can see why it got out. Now we might consider having to change Ms. Mastrano's location."

My heart sank at her words. Leave Palm Springs? I actually liked it here, despite the constant sweltering heat. I'd actually made a few friends here. What would it mean for me if I had to leave? And…for Adrian?

I remembered that I was still speaking with Stanton. "Do whatever you think is necessary for Jill's safety."

"You will probably have to remain with Ms. Mastrano. You know everything about this current situation better than any other Alchemist, and it's too risky to add new people to this current operation. Once this is over…I'll speak with those higher up to move you to a better post, Ms. Sage."

She had spoken of this before, moving me to somewhere where I wouldn't have to deal so much with vampires. It was a great honor, and would've been a privilege for me not so long ago. But now…

I swallowed, and said, "Thank you, ma'am."

We ended the call and then I was left alone with my thoughts as I walked back to my dorm room. Leave Palm Springs…would that mean I also had to leave Adrian?

_But he'll go with Jill_, I thought. _And if I have to stay with her, then surely I'll see Adrian at one point or another_.

In the weeks that had passed since our kiss, we hadn't been able to see each other much. I didn't speak to him much when we did see each other at Jill's feedings at Clarence's. I didn't want the others to know about us. We kept in touch through texting, but we didn't use the phone too often. Still, he was always on my mind.

Sometimes Jill would update me on how Adrian was doing. Often, she said that he missed me and wished he could see me, but sometimes she lapsed into how Adrian thought of me and saw me the same way he did…which was awkward, to say the least.

Deep down, I longed to see him too. Just the few glimpses of him at Jill's feedings weren't enough. But it wasn't safe for us to meet. I was still perpetually afraid someone had seen us, and would report me to my superiors, even though it was unlikely any Alchemists except me would be around.

I knew the only way for us to meet without anyone would be in dreams. I couldn't bear to let myself take that next step. I would be surrounded in vampire magic if I let Adrian visit me in dreams. So I suffered in silence.

"Hey, Melbourne."

I looked up to see Trey, a slight smirk on his face. "Hey Trey. What's up?"

"Did you take notes in Chemistry today?" he asked.

I sighed in exasperation. "Were you busy talking to another cheerleader again? I swear, someday our teacher's going to send you out for detention."

"Nah, she loves me," Trey said with a grin. "I can charm my teachers into anything."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm only lending my notes to you later because you can't do this on your own. Meet me at the library in an hour."

We said our goodbyes, and parted ways. I decided to head back to my dorm to take a long hot shower, and change my clothes.

For the most part, our friendship before the incident with the Warriors of Light had remained the same. I thought that he seemed more cheerful now that he was free from the Warriors of Light, even though he wanted to rejoin them to make it up to his father. One thing we shared in common was having demanding fathers.

When I changed into jeans and a loose white blouse, my phone rang with a text. I checked my phone. It was from Adrian.

_I miss you. When will I see you again?_

I smiled to myself and found myself texting him back.

_Hopefully soon. Jill's feeding is in the next 2 days. But you know we probably can't be alone, or it'll draw suspicion_.

I sighed and tucked my phone away when five minutes passed without him answering. That Alchemist voice warned, _You shouldn't be falling in love with a vampire. This is going against all your beliefs. What kind of Alchemist are you?_

I tried to ignore it as best as I could, and rooted through my papers to find my Chemistry notes for Trey. But the dark thoughts lingered on my mind a little longer.

* * *

That night, I couldn't sleep. I uneasily tossed and turned, thinking about everything that had happened in the past day. Being dragged out of bed to cast a scrying spell. The threat that Jill had received. My call with Stanton.

This was one of the few times I wished I wasn't so smart. My brain was going a million miles an hour, literally. I just wanted to sleep and drift off peacefully, maybe dream about Adrian…Was it so much to ask?

I closed my eyes, and when I opened them again…I wasn't back in my own room.

I was standing in a sunny field with lots of flowers – roses, honeysuckle, tulips, etc. The whole field was a blaze of colors, and the sky was a deep blue. I smiled up at the sky, letting the sunlight warm me.

The field looked a lot like the one I used to walk in near my neighborhood. Morning glory flowers were the only one that had grown in the field the last time I'd been there. I hadn't been there in years, as I kept training to be an Alchemist.

Then it occurred to me to look down at myself. I frowned. I was wearing a pale blue square neck baby doll dress with a skirt that went down to a few inches above my knees. I'd never worn anything with such a short skirt before, but I had to admit that the color of the dress was actually very pretty.

I heard an intake of breath from behind me, and spun around in fright.

When I saw who it was, I gasped.

"_Adrian_?"

I blinked to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Nope, it was Adrian all right. _My_ Adrian.

He was dressed in a white cotton shirt that clung to his body very well, shorts, and sandals. His dark hair was arranged in that messy way that looked good on him.

His green eyes widened at the sight of me. "_Sydney_? What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question," I said. Then something occurred to me, and I crossed my arms over my chest. "Did you bring me into a spirit dream?"

Adrian shook his head. "No! I swear I didn't bring you into a dream. Not when that was something you didn't want." His eyes and voice were earnest, and I knew he was telling the truth.

I frowned at the ground. "Then…do you think this dream is real?"

Adrian shrugged. "I guess we'll have to talk to each other when we do wake up. But it sure feels real enough to me."

I bent down towards the ground, and plucked what appeared to be a rose. I inhaled the scent and sat down. Adrian sank down onto the ground next to me.

"It smells like a regular rose," I murmured. A quote from _Romeo and Juliet_ ran through my head, and I couldn't help but recite it. "That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

Adrian smiled at me. "From Romeo and Juliet." To my astonishment, he recited one of Romeo's quotes. "I take thee at thy word; Call me but love, and I'll be new baptized."

"How…how did you know that quote?" I asked, staring at him.

"I _did_ watch the movie," Adrian said with a grin as he took my hands in his. "I was paying some attention when I was in high school."

I was still amazed though. So often, he acted lighthearted and playful, not showing that underneath all that, he was sensitive and serious.

"Where do you think we are, Sage?" he asked, wrapping his arms around my waist. I basked in the feeling of being close to him.

"This place looks like somewhere I used to go near my neighborhood," I said. "It brought me a little peace. But I stopped going once I became more involved with my Alchemist training."

Adrian's eyes turned sad as he looked down at me. "Oh. This place is beautiful and special…just like you."

I shook my head. "I'm not beautiful, and you know it." But the look in Adrian's eyes when he looked at me…especially that morning he'd first confessed his love for me.

"But you are," he said, hugging me tighter. "Don't you remember what I said that night when you came to my place from the Halloween dance?"

I remembered those words perfectly. "Yes, I remember."

"I meant it," he said a little fiercely. "You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen walking this earth. Even now…you are so beautiful. You don't know beautiful and unique you are, Sydney."

I caught my breath at his words, my heart fluttering. Adrian was the only one that had ever told me that I was beautiful.

The guy I'd actually dated, Brayden, had never actually called me "beautiful." That night at the Halloween dance, he'd only been able to say that the dress looked "very pretty" on me. Although I'd pretended to myself it hadn't bothered me…it sort of did. He was saying the _dress_ looked pretty. Not me.

Adrian now planted a kiss on my cheek, and his lips felt so warm and soft against my skin. "And you look especially gorgeous right now, with your hair glowing golden in the sun, and in that blue dress."

I now rested my hands on his chest, and looked up at him. He gazed back at me with those amazing green eyes, patient as ever.

I leaned towards him, and before I knew what I was doing, knocked him over to the ground so I was straddling him, and kissed him.

He held me tightly as we kissed and kissed. His arm was still around my waist, and I felt his other hand slide up to stroke my hair. I pulled him to me.

I felt him tentatively slide his tongue against my lips. Without even thinking about what I was doing, I opened my mouth a little, and his tongue pressed against mine. My need for him warred against my shyness, but I ignored it and kept kissing him. My entire body felt hot all over as we made out. There was absolutely nothing on my mind except how I loved being so close to Adrian, and how his lips felt on mine…

He stopped kissing my mouth and instead trailed kisses down to my neck and along my shoulder. I suspected he wasn't getting as into it as he would've liked because he was being careful not to accidentally bite me with his fangs. I gasped when he found my beck pulse and kissed it gently before he pulled away.

Kissing was _amazing_. I'd seen it in a few movies, and I'd seen plenty of kids my own age making out in public. But I had never known or imagined how much it could mean when you were with someone you genuinely cared about. I knew that kissing involved 34 facial muscles, and that in theory, it did seem pretty gross, pressing your lips to someone else's. Now I understood why people loved to kiss so much. I could've spent the whole day just holding Adrian, and kissing him.

"I've never kissed anyone quite like you," he said, staring into my eyes. I blushed and looked away for a moment. _What did he mean by that_?

"Do I seem sort of...inexperienced?" I asked, knowing that my face was probably flaming by now.

Adrian shook his head, a slight smile on his face. "Not really. And even if it showed, I wouldn't care."

I now sat up and he gently pushed me off before he sat up too and pulled me close. I could feel that his heart was racing under his shirt.

I leaned even closer, closing the space between us, and kissed him. His arms went around my waist as we kissed. I now flicked my tongue against his mouth and he opened for me. I lost track of time as we kissed. He trailed a kiss down my neck and along my shoulder again before working his way back to my lips. I made a small sound of protest as he pulled away from me.

"It's sunset," he said, pointing at the sky.

I looked up. The sky was now a blaze of purples, oranges, and pinks, and the setting sun cast a golden glow over us. "Wow. Does that mean our dream's coming to an end?"

"Probably," Adrian said. He leaned in and kissed my lips very sweetly. "Sweet dreams, lily girl," he murmured as the dream turned foggy and faded to black.

* * *

I woke up with a sleepy smile on my face. My dream last night had been amazing…

Now, I wondered why the dream was so vividly clear when it wasn't a spirit dream, and how I'd been able to talk to Adrian. Had he dreamed it too? Or had it just been an unnaturally clear dream on my own?

I stretched, and leaned over to pick up my phone. I looked down at the glowing digits. 7 in the morning, which meant Adrian was probably still asleep.

_Hey Adrian, I dreamed about us last night…did you dream anything?_

I hit send and waited. To my surprise, my phone buzzed two minutes later. Why would he be up at this hour? I stared at his reply.

_Yeah. I dreamed about us kissing in a flower field_.

He remembered the dream. But what did this mean? Did I suddenly have an ability to walk in people's dreams? Or had I been able to talk to Adrian because he was someone who specialized in dreams?

Or….did this mean I had magic? Terwilliger was always telling me-

I cut off the thought. No. There was no magic in my blood, nothing special about me, despite her claims I was a natural. I just followed the spell books I'd been forced to read so I could cast spells. It didn't mean I actually had magic _inside_ of me.


	4. Love Advice

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 4 Love Advice

I walked into Ms. Terwilliger's classroom after school. Today was one of the few days I had to serve as her student aide (thank goodness I didn't have to be there everyday).

"There you are, Ms. Melbourne. I want you to learn a few more spells today," she said, pointing at an obviously brand-new spellbook perched on the side of her desk. "Turn to the table of contents, and please find the spell that will shield you from being scried."

I'd had to use magic to look for Sonya when she'd been kidnapped, and to escape the Warriors of Light, but this did not mean I wanted to be forced to learn magic. "Ma'am, I don't want to use magic! Just because I used it a few times-"

"I'm aware of that," she said, sounding extremely impatient. "I'm also aware of how you think magic shouldn't be used, but you've had to for certain situations. I asked you to scry for my older sister last night, yes?"

I nodded, feeling uneasy.

"While there's no way that she would know you scried for her, since she doesn't know you, it doesn't change the fact she could scry for you."

"What's going on?" I asked, feeling like I was at the end of my patience. "You told me I needed to learn magic for my own protection, but why?"

Ms. Terwilliger met my gaze for a long moment, her eyes showing no sign of the featherbrained, scattered teacher I was used to. "I can't tell you at the moment. I'm sorry, but you'll have to take my word for it, as much as you dislike using magic."

I sighed, and took the spellbook from her desk. "What do you want me to do?" I asked, feeling more resigned than ever.

"I want you to prepare the ingredients for the spell, and to cast it at midnight tomorrow," she said. "Since it's a Saturday, that will be the best time to cast this particular spell."

Luckily, for the rest of the period, she didn't mention any more magic. I copied and translated some books for her, and I also corrected some of my classmate's papers for her. After seeing all the piles of schoolwork a teacher had to grade, I was glad I wouldn't have to be a teacher.

_But I won't be able to have a real job either_, I thought bitterly. _I'll _always_ be bound to the Alchemists_.

My independent study ended, and I was free to go. Ms. Terwilliger didn't ask me to run to Spencer's for her cappuccino, which relieved me. I had a whole workload for all my classes as it was already.

When I'd finished my homework in my room later, I felt very alone. Sure, I had Jill, Eddie, Angeline, Julia, and Kristi as my friends (although I was sure my superiors would definitely not approve of the first three) but I still felt alone.

And Adrian….he was so much more to me than just a friend.

_He's your boyfriend_, a traitorous voice said, and I immediately shut the thought off. But it lingered.

_My boyfriend?_ I wondered to myself. _We hadn't even gone on a date yet!_

I groaned and leaned back against my chair. I needed love advice. Jill wasn't really an option, since her first boyfriend had wanted to turn Strigoi, and her second boyfriend was a human…

I now pulled out my phone and stared at it. There was an option, but…

Working with "unnatural creatures" was one thing…but purposely calling one up to ask for _advice_? And love advice, at that. I could almost see my superiors tracking the call and then dragging me off to a re-education center. I shuddered at the thought and paused.

I decided I really needed advice so I dialed a number that I hadn't ever called, praying that no one would ever trace this.

Two rings, and then a voice answered. "Rose Hathaway."

"It's Sydney."

"Hey, Alchemist. Long time no see," she said from the other end.

"What time is it for you over…at Court?" I asked.

Rose Hathaway was a dhampir, and one of the Moroi Queen's guardians. I'd helped her out when I ran into her in Russia, and when her mobster father Abe Mazur had blackmailed me into hiding her when she escaped jail.

Rose paused for a moment, and I could almost imagine that she was shrugging over the phone. "No idea. Nighttime? But I already had dinner. So, what made you decide to call me? I thought you weren't keen on talking with 'evil creatures of the night.'"

I winced. "Well…I wanted to ask you for a little love advice."

There was a whoosh of breath from the other end, and a choking sound. "I could've sworn I just heard you say you wanted love advice."

I paused for a moment. "Er…yeah. I did."

"Did an alien take over your body?" Rose demanded. I could kind of see why she'd ask that, since I didn't seem the type but still. I was a bit annoyed how just because I was a smart student, everyone automatically thought I had no love life whatsoever. That had been true once, but now...

"Hey! I'm the one who got you into that boring hotel in West Virginia that was called Motel-"

"Fine," Rose grudgingly conceded. "What do you need?"

I paused again. "I don't know where to start," I admitted. What was I supposed to say? Your ex-boyfriend told me that he's in love with me?

"Start from the beginning," Rose offered. "Or maybe why you had a sudden urge to come to me, of all people, for love advice."

I sighed. This wasn't going to be easy. "Adrian confessed he had feelings for me."

There was dead silence from the other end. I started to panic. What was I thinking, calling Rose, Adrian's_ ex_, to ask about love advice? Maybe I would've been better off asking Jill instead. She did have more insight into his personality and thoughts, given their bond.

Then she let out a whistle. "Well. I can see you would want to ask someone for love advice now, since we're dealing with Ivashkov. When did it all start?"

It all came pouring out, and I found myself rambling a little. How I'd gone to Adrian's to ask how he'd known how to drive stick. Our kiss. His confession of how he felt about me. My initial rejection, and then how I'd gone back to him.

I wanted to tell her about the dream I'd shared with Adrian, but I didn't know how to explain that it wasn't a spirit dream. I didn't want anyone to think I was a freak or that I used magic, so I edited the dream a little and said Adrian had visited me in a spirit dream.

There was a pause on the other end as Rose processed all this information. "When do you think you started falling for him? I mean…he's an 'evil creature of the night.' And he drinks blood."

I thought about it. It was really hard to say. I'd gradually started to enjoy spending time with him, and even looked forward to it, despite his irritating (so-called witty) remarks. For some reason, my mind flashed back to the day we'd went out to meet his father, and he'd said he wouldn't be able to bear it if I thought any less of him.

"I don't really know," I said at last. "It's really hard to say…but I think it _might've_ started when we went out to meet his father. His father was…well…"

"Being a douche?" Rose offered.

I couldn't help but laugh. "You could say that. But anyway, he said he couldn't bear the thought of me thinking any less of him after the scathing criticism he got from Lord Ivashkov."

"I can imagine," Rose said. "His father's not…very nice, to put it mildly."

I sighed. "Yeah. And…also, I wonder how Adrian could fall for someone like _me_? I'm like…your polar opposite. I'm not a fighter or passionate, and I must be boring-"

"You're _not_ boring to him," Rose interrupted. "His confession to you…he said he wanted to better when he was around you, because you inspired him to excel. _I_ couldn't do that. I wasn't meant to be with him. That was part of the reason I broke up with him-"

"Besides the fact that you were in love with Dimitri," I pointed out.

Rose sighed. "Yeah. When I broke up with Adrian…it didn't turn out well. I told him that he was an amazing person, but he didn't realize it. I also didn't tell him something else I was thinking at the time."

"What didn't you tell?" I asked. I was starting to feel a little irritated…and jealous. She'd had the chance to be with Adrian…I never would get that chance, even if he loved me right now.

"I didn't want him to tell him because…I was already breaking his heart as it was. I didn't tell him that I wasn't the one who could inspire him to be a better person. And when we were dating, he made up a dating contract that said he would give up his vices – his cigarettes and alcohol."

"Yeah…about that. He gave up smoking for a week," I said, flashing back to when I'd gone to his apartment last time.

Rose sounded astonished when she spoke, and I had a feeling that if I was there, her eyes would've been bugging out. "He did _what_?"

"He gave up his cigarettes for a whole week. I'm proud of him."

"He never did that when we were still together. And for him to give that up, without having to require a dating contract…" Rose sounded like she was in wonder, like how I'd felt when I'd first seen Fallingwater in Pennsylvania a few years ago. "He must really love you."

"But why me?" I exclaimed. "I'm a human, not any of those pretty Moroi or dhampir women he usually likes. And I'm an _Alchemist_. I'm not supposed to even be friends with vampires, let alone fall in love with one!"

"Listen to me," Rose said, and she sounded very confident. "He wouldn't have given up his cigarettes – without a dating contract, no less – unless he really, really wanted to. He wouldn't do that, even for me. I mean, he tried. But there were times when he would lapse back. What does he do now?"

"He's studying art at one of the local colleges," I said, a little startled by the abrupt change in subject.

There was a pause. "Also…is he still mad at me?"

"I don't think he is…but to be on the safe side, I don't bring it up. He did say that he tried to change for you, to impress you and to get you to want him."

"This is different," Rose murmured, and I suspected that it was for herself as well as me. "I've…well. You're the one who inspires him to be a better person."

I scoffed. "Like he could completely give up alcohol and women. He's still sworn off cigarettes, and I haven't seen him with a single pack." The moment the words were out of my mouth, I felt horrible at thinking so low of Adrian when in reality I did think highly of him. But why would Adrian Ivashkov, a royal Moroi and playboy at that, want to be with me long-term, and keep his interest in me?

"He's a good guy, despite his vices. And I know he would _never_, _ever_ cheat on you. Especially if he loves you this much. It's one thing if he's just…flirting and playing around with women, and he's not in a relationship. But when he's in an involved relationship, he won't cheat on you. That I can vouch for at least. Oh, and by the way, if he ever hurt you, I'd happily kick his ass for you."

I laughed, trying to imagine Rose hopping on a plane and coming here to Palm Springs just to kick Adrian's ass, but then turned serious. _"Is_ this a relationship?" I asked, feeling highly skeptical. "We haven't been on a date yet! Not that we can, in case my superiors get wind of it."

I could almost imagine Rose shrugging on the other end. "Yeah. He confessed to you, and you accepted….so it is. You'll definitely have to be careful."

There was really loud noise from the other end and I winced, holding the phone away from my ear. "What is that?"

"Give me a sec," Rose said, and I heard some background noises. Then she came back to the phone and sighed. "Sorry, Sydney. I have to go now. Duty calls. But I think you should definitely give Adrian a chance. Even though we're no longer with each other, I still think he's a special guy. He deserves to have a girl who'll understand him, and is meant for him the way I am for Dimitri."

"If you say so," I said with a sigh. _Am I meant for Adrian? And is he meant for me? _All questions I couldn't look up or ask anyone, which was unusual. This was way different from actual schoolwork, where I could always turn to the textbook for answers, or ask a teacher for help.

"Bye, Sydney. Call again if you need advice." _Click_.

I sighed and set down the phone before I stretched my arms. Calling Rose had definitely helped clear my mind a little. I didn't know why I hadn't thought of this sooner. It hadn't been _too_ awkward, since she was Adrian's ex…I suppose it could've been worse.

* * *

**Author's note**: So this is kinda like a filler chapter... I think I have a case of writer's block (again) and I'm not really sure where to go with the story from here. Suggestions/reviews are greatly appreciated, as usual!


	5. A Date That Isn't a Date

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 5 A Date That Isn't a Date

The days passed at Amberwood, and soon a week had passed since I'd called Rose. Every few days, Ms. Terwilliger would continue training me in magic, which I really didn't like, but I had no choice now. She claimed that the "danger was getting closer and closer." She still would never tell me, despite my best efforts.

I was left on my own to figure out what the danger was, so I did some research (which, unlike my usual standards, wasn't extremely reliable). After reading a few history/spell books, I was starting to have an idea. And it might be connected to both magic and Strigoi.

I walked into the cafeteria and grabbed a yogurt and apple before I sat down with my "family." Eddie and Angeline were very conspicuously absent. Jill sat at an empty table, her tray untouched.

"Where are they?" I asked Jill as I sat down across from her with my own tray. "I thought they were supposed to be protecting you!"

"When they saw you coming…they decided to head out and go somewhere private," Jill said morosely.

_Alone_ time? That didn't sound anything like Eddie, who was so devoted to his job and protecting Jill. Why would he have snuck off with private time with Angeline? Anger rose in me.

"He can't just go off and do whatever he likes whenever he feels like it! His job is to protect you. And he especially can't go somewhere alone with Angeline to do God knows what-"

"I'm sure they haven't gone that far," Jill said automatically, her head down. Her tone was even bleaker than when I'd come back from Adrian's after we'd kissed the first time.

I was really annoyed with Eddie now. Did he like Angeline that much that he was now neglecting his duty? Maybe I had to talk to my superiors about it, but I doubted it would do much good. Besides, getting new people involved in hiding Jill was dangerous, given that threat Jill had received.

Jill hadn't received any more threats, but Angeline stayed by her side as much as she could. We were constantly worried that some Moroi assassins would show up at Amberwood and kill Jill. It wouldn't be hard to control Jill if one of them was strong in compulsion, so we kept a lookout.

Jill lifted her head and looked at one of the doors across from us. "Here they come."

Eddie and Angeline came in, and again, Angeline was laughing. Her blue eyes seemed to sparkle with light and she looked very happy. I noticed that their hands brushed against each other for a second.

When they came over to sit on Jill's side, I just snapped. "What were you thinking, leaving Jill alone here?" I demanded.

"We thought she'd be okay when you're with her," Eddie said, looking slightly taken aback by my tone.

"Your duty is to _protect_ Jill, not to be selfish and run off with your girlfriend! Have you forgotten Jill's the Dragomir princess? If she dies, Queen Vasilisa will lose her throne and a civil war will break out," I snapped. "Then my kind will probably notice and then they will work for the Strigoi! Not to mention I'll probably lose my job."

I took a deep breath after my lecture, and I noticed it was dead silent at my table. Jill's eyes were the size of quarters. Eddie and Angeline looked at each other like I'd gone crazy, but then Eddie took a deep breath.

"You're right. It was selfish of me to go with Angeline alone," he said at last, his tone somewhat cold. He turned to Jill, and his face and voice softened as he spoke to her. "Sorry, Jill. I should've been looking out for your safety instead of being selfish."

"It's…okay," she managed to squeak out, her cheeks going pink, which actually made her look even prettier. I sighed to myself. Why could Moroi girls stay so slim all the time? I would kill to be her size, even if Adrian had told me that I wouldn't be able to be as slim as a Moroi girl, and I should think about _gaining_ weight…All I knew was that whenever I was around Jill during lunch, I just wanted to lose at least five pounds and slim down.

* * *

I slammed one of my books on my desk in frustration, and felt like cursing. There was nothing about _evil_ magic users in the tiny history portion of the spellbook I was currently studying. Absolutely nothing.

There had been only one sentence in a small paragraph in one of my spellbooks that I'd looked through last night. "Not every magic user is dedicated to the light – some have turned down the path of darkness and evil and use their magic to hurt others." I supposed it was a cautionary line, but I suspected that those magic users who "turned down the path of darkness and evil" were the great danger Ms. Terwilliger warned me against. I'd never seen anything about them since. That had been my only "research."

"How am I supposed to find out more about those evil magic users if there's nothing on them?" I asked out loud, and sighed. Great. I was talking to myself now.

I now looked out my window absently. It was now sunset, and I wished that I could leave campus so I could be with Adrian.

Adrian, Adrian, Adrian. We'd only been able to see each other at Jill's feedings, which were only twice a week. My heart ached in the days that I didn't see him. How was it possible I could miss one person so much?

_A person who's also a vampire_, my Alchemist voice warned, but I tried to reason with myself.

Yes, he was a vampire. But as I'd thought that day we'd shared our first kiss, there were humans out there who were more evil than a Moroi could ever be.

I really wanted to see him. I was done with all my homework, after all. And it was a Friday night too. Plus, I had off-campus privileges.

_What if someone sees you with him?_ that nagging voice asked_. It won't be long before you're discovered_.

Alchemists wouldn't just drop by in any particular location without alerting the Alchemist who was stationed there first. So I tried to reassure myself that I was perfectly safe this way. I'd turn my cell phone on so that if something came up, I'd be able to leave Adrian fast and be able to return to Amberwood. We also wouldn't go anywhere that screamed, _We're on a date!_

So I decided that it was time to head for our final lesson in self-defense at Wolfe's.

* * *

"I didn't know you were still into self-defense," Adrian said dryly as I drove down the highway towards Wolfe's house. "Especially how I gave up on it last time."

I shot him a look as I switched on the blinker and shifted onto the left lane. "Well…this is the only place that we can go together without it looking suspicious."

I'd called Adrian's cell phone before I'd headed out to pick him up. He'd readily agreed to attend the last self-defense lesson, so he could spend time with me. This time, he was dressed very casually in slightly beat up jeans and a short-sleeved blue shirt. The very first time I'd taken him to class, he'd been dressed nicely, in clothes more suited to meeting his father than for a self-defense class.

Adrian let out a low whistle that made me jump in my seat as I steered Latte down a side street. "You're even smarter than you are already."

I might've blushed if I was the type to, but I did feel my cheeks get a little warm. "You know we can't actually go on a real date," I said as I pulled up into Wolfe's driveway and stepped out with an exercise bag. I would always think that Wolfe's house looked creepy, no matter how ordinary it looked inside. "Someone might see us together. So this is the only place we can go without looking like we're going on a date."

Adrian shrugged as he got out and slammed the door. I glared at him as I locked Latte. "Be careful with Latte!"

"Sorry, Latte," he said with a mock bow towards my car. As we walked up the drive, he added, "Can't fault the logic in that. A very undate-like date, if I do say so myself. A date that isn't a date."

Wolfe opened the door and waved us in before he went off to somewhere else in the house.

"Well, it doesn't exactly follow the conventional rules for a date," I said as we headed towards the garage where the lessons were held. "On a date, it's best if a couple does social activities together without too many people around. But this will have to do for us."

Adrian gave me a rueful smile as he gently brushed my hair away from my face. I caught my breath at his touch, but he quickly dropped his hand. "I keep forgetting that you used to go out with that Brandon guy."

"Brayden," I corrected. "And…well. I never really felt like I loved him. It might've been better for us if we'd just stayed as friends. Friends who like to talk about Latin and solar energy rather than go out as a couple."

It felt very awkward, discussing my ex-boyfriend with my…current boyfriend. There. I'd thought it. We were dating – even if the defense lesson was, in Adrian's words, "a date that isn't a date."

* * *

In this final lesson, Wolfe took out the practice dummies and taught us how to punch someone. We had to close our hands into a fist, and our thumb went across our pointer and middle finger. Even though it was just a dummy….ouch.. The dummies were as hard as people.

"I want you to punch with as much force as if you were really punching someone!" Wolfe bellowed, pacing in the front of the room. "You'll only be able to learn if you gain experience, but punching each other isn't an option."

I lunged out at the dummy, fist aimed for the dummy's head, and punched it. Pain radiated through my hand, and I winced. It felt like I'd hit someone very hard even though my target had been a dummy.

Wolfe also showed a picture and pointed out a human's most vulnerable parts. He told us to aim for those areas if we were ever attacked.

"If you can manage to cause your attacker pain, you at least have a chance of running away and getting help," he explained.

He went over some more basic defense moves – like the standard knee to the groin. That would be enough to cause any attacker to double over in pain. I couldn't help but think that Rose wouldn't just leave an attacker in pain if she was attacked – she'd probably leave her attacker half-dead on the street with multiple injuries.

I attempted to knee the dummy and yelped. "Ow!"

Adrian was instantly at my side, and he sounded concerned. "Sage, are you okay?"

"Yeah…I think," I muttered as I knelt on the floor on my good knee. I checked my other knee. Sure enough, there was a bruise blooming on it. I was reasonably sure I would live, but right now, it felt excruciatingly painful.

Adrian looked around before he leaned in and whispered into my ear. "If everyone else wasn't around….I would be able to heal you."

I shook my head frantically. Fear radiated through me, although being healed instantly sounded a lot more appealing than suffering for a few days with a bruise. "_No_. Absolutely no magic. I can heal fast. My tattoo enables me to heal faster than most people do."

Adrian raised his hand. "Okay, okay, I get it Sage." There was a slight pause and he advanced towards the dummy. "My turn to have a go with the dummy."

He leaned and punched the dummy several times. It looked effortless for him, and he didn't look like he was in pain. I scowled behind his back while I was nursing my aching knee. Moroi didn't have the same physical stamina and strength as dhampirs, but they had excellent senses to make up for it. Adrian on the other hand….he was punching like he had no issues whatsoever with his physical stamina.

He looked so graceful while he was in movement, like some of the Greek statues in my history books. I couldn't help but stare a little at him. The shirt clung to his body very well, and I could practically see his six-pack –

I cut off those thoughts. _Stop looking_, I scolded myself, but I couldn't find the will in myself to stop, which scared me. I was supposed to be in control. I started reciting the French anthem – La Marserillaise – in my head. In the original French text.

_Allons enfants de la patrie,  
Le jour de gloire est arriv? ..._

I stopped on the refrain because Adrian had stopped punching the dummy. Wolfe now stood up and addressed us.

"This concludes the last class of our session. I hope you have gotten something out of this class, and always remember – half of the attacks can be stopped if you can find ways to prevent them in the first place."

With that, class was over. Adrian picked up my exercise bag before he helped me to my feet. "Can you walk?"

"Sort of," I muttered, gingerly trying to put weight on my left leg.

He helped me to Latte and into the shotgun seat, which was harder to do now that it was dark. I only realized what had happened when he held his hand out for the key. "Key, Sage."

"What?" I demanded, pain forgotten. "You can't drive my car! What if you-"

"I won't crash Latte, or get a speck of food in it," he promised, raising his right hand solemnly.

I groaned. I really didn't want to get up and move around to the driver's side, and this side was closer….I dug through my handbag for my keys and handed them over to Adrian. He got into the driver's side and started driving down the street.

"Where are we going now?" I asked as he drove back towards the highway.

"We're going to have dinner," he answered.

I balked. "What? It's already past eight! I don't want fattening-"

"It won't be fattening," he answered as he pulled off the highway and headed into the downtown part of Palm Springs.

* * *

I was _not_ happy when we walked into Sweet Tomatoes.

"Are you serious?" I grumbled as I followed Adrian and picked up a tray and plate. "Look at all that dressing –"

"Sydney, how many times do I have to tell you? You're not even close to fat," Adrian insisted as we lined up, and I reluctantly scooped some of a mixed salad onto my plate. "You're really-"

"I don't want to hear it," I said flatly as we continued down the line. "Please. Just drop it." Just because he thought that I was skinny didn't mean I looked at myself that same way. Especially when it brought back memories of when my father, who had been particularly harsh one night, had looked me up and down and demanded, "If those monsters can do it, why can't you?"

Adrian did, although I could see he was very reluctant about it.

When we'd paid and sat down, Adrian stared at my plate. "Is….that all you're getting?"

I'd only piled half of my plate with salad and vegetables. At least I hadn't gone for the salad dressing, although that would probably make the food taste a little better.

I shrugged after I speared some pasta. "Going to get soup later, and I'll be really full."

Adrian opened his mouth to say something, but seemed to think it over and then shut his mouth. His green eyes were filled with an emotion I didn't know how to describe as he looked at me for a moment longer, and then he looked away and started to eat.

* * *

We were both quiet as I finally drove Adrian back home to his apartment. Despite the tension at Sweet Tomatoes, I did have to admit – I liked that we'd been able to spend time, even though it hadn't been very romantic in the traditional sense.

I pulled up in front of Adrian's building and stopped the engine. "Good night," I said, keeping my hands on the steering wheel and not looking at him. I didn't want to see him leave me. Even though we'd spent a few hours together, it didn't feel like it was enough.

Adrian was about to get out, but before he opened the door, he looked back at me and hesitated. He whispered, "Am I going to get my goodnight kiss?"

"Fine," I grumbled, fighting a smile at his pouting expression.

I leaned over and gently pressed my lips against his, but was surprised at how warm I felt all over. When I felt his tongue brush against my lips, I opened my mouth and our tongues met. He tried to pull away after a few moments, but I made a small sound of protest and pulled him even closer, just letting myself enjoy being so close to him. I ran my fingers through his dark hair and down to his neck.

When Adrian finally pulled away, he was gasping for breath. "That was one hell of a kiss."

It really did feel like one. My lips still tingled from his touch, and I looked at him. "Adrian….when do you think we'll be able to meet again?"

Adrian shrugged, looking helpless. "I don't think we can meet besides feedings for some time. You can't get in trouble with your superiors and…get sent away, or punished."

His concern touched me very deeply. He knew about the trouble I could get in if I was seen with him by anyone. I slumped in my seat, although I'd been the one who'd reiterated, time and time again, that we couldn't meet in person all the time. It was far too risky.

Unless…an idea hit me, but I was too scared to voice it aloud.

Vampire magic…maybe Adrian could talk to me in my dreams? I didn't like advocating his use of magic – and because I'd heard that spirit would slowly cause users to go insane – but if we could meet in our dreams, where no one would know…

"What's up, Sage?" Adrian asked gently, breaking me out of my thoughts. "You look like you have something heavy on your mind."

I hesitated and blurted out, "Can you talk to me in my dreams? It would be safe there, where no one can see us."

Shock crossed Adrian's face, and his green eyes went wide with surprise. He'd never expected this to come. "Are…are you sure? I'd be using spirit so I could talk to you…."

"Please," I murmured, hugging him and burying my face into his shoulder. He smelled so sweet and intoxicating, but I was pretty sure it wasn't any type of cologne.

"If you're sure about it," he said, sounding very uncertain, which was unlike him.

"I am," I said firmly as I released him.

He planted a kiss on my cheek. "Good night, Sage. Sweet dreams tonight." He winked at me as he got out of the car and shut the door.

* * *

When I finally arrived back in my dorm at Amberwood, it was a few minutes before twelve – my curfew.

"Oh, Ms. Melrose," Mrs. Weathers called out as I passed her desk. "Something came in the mail for you."

I paused. "For me?"

She held out an envelope and I took it. My assumed name, Sydney Melrose, was written on the outside in fanciful script. I thanked Mrs. Weathers, and went up to my room, curiosity and unease growing. Why would anyone have sent me anything? It wasn't like anyone in my family, my mom aside, who would send me anything.

I opened the envelope and a piece of cream paper fluttered to the floor. When I picked it up, the texture felt heavy.

I flipped it over and the first words I saw – in a gold ornate lettering – Mr. and Mrs. Mikhail Tanner request the honor of your presence at their wedding…

It was a wedding invitation, to Sonya's and Mikhail's wedding.

* * *

**Author's note**: Phew...finally got another chapter in - after some writer's block. I also want to thank the person who gave the suggestion for Sydney and Adrian to attend the last self-defense class as a date, and for Sydney to agree to Adrian to meet in their dreams. It did help with the writer's block :) Reviews/ideas are always appreciated as always!


	6. Venetian Dreams

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 6 Venetian Dreams

I stared at the wedding invitation for a moment. I had to admit, I felt pleased and honored that Sonya would think to invite me to her wedding. I was a human, after all. I hadn't expected her to consider inviting me. I would imagine that it was a great honor to attend a Moroi wedding, but I wondered what my superiors would think of this. I'd have to ask permission before I could even dream about going.

I picked up my phone and called not my Alchemist superiors, but Jill.

She sounded wide awake on the other end. "Hi, Sydney! Did you get an invitation too?"

"Yeah, I just got back." I didn't elaborate on where – she'd find out soon enough with the bond.

"It sounds nice. Sonya asked me to be one of her bridesmaids. I wonder how Sonya's wedding will be like. It must be so romantic, her getting married to someone she actually loves. And I wonder how we'll get back to Court…"

I froze at Jill's words. "Did you say…Court?" I hadn't checked the location on the invitation.

Jill sounded confused. "Yeah…why?" There was a moment of silence, and then I heard her exhale. "_Oh_…"

"I'm sorry Jill," I said weakly, feeling horrible for her. She'd been away from Court, away from her family and friends, and now she had a chance to return to see them, even briefly…but now I was unsure because if the Moroi dissidents recognized her. "The risk of you being recognized at Court is pretty high…"

Jill was silent. Then she suggested tentatively, "What if I disguised myself? Like…maybe buy some colored contacts? Or…" She paused. "Maybe Adrian could disguise me. But you'd have to ask him if he's okay with that."

I frowned, and a memory clicked. Another spirit ability involved being able to disguise someone's appearance. I wasn't sure how it worked exactly, but I think it involved a little compulsion. When Rose had come to the hotel near Court to ask my colleague about something relating to the previous Moroi queen's murder, she'd been in disguise (thanks to Sonya) so the guardians wouldn't kill her on the spot.

"I'll ask him tomorrow," I hedged, looking at the clock. "I'm going to bed now."

"Night, Sydney."

We hung up and then I started readying myself for bed. I told myself I would have to worry about Jill and going to Sonya's wedding tomorrow. There was nothing I could do about those problems tonight. When I was done, I took deep breaths, trying to steel myself against my fear that vampire magic was taboo and evil.

_He's not using it to hurt you_, I assured myself as I lay on my bed and clicked off the light. _He _loves_ you. He just wants to see you and talk to you somewhere safe. Besides, _I_ was the one who asked him to talk to me in my dreams, away from where anyone can see us_.

My last thought before I drifted off to sleep was that I was _not_ a model Alchemist as all my superiors claimed I was.

* * *

When I opened my eyes again, I was in Venice. I was standing in St. Mark's Square – Piazza San Marco, in Italian – and facing towards the Grand Canal and San Giorgio Maggiore. To be specific, I stood in the Piazzetta, between the two pillars of St. Mark's winged lion and St. Teodoro. From what I'd read, the lion itself predated the wings by almost two thousand years.

I turned around, and towards my right was St. Mark's Basilica and the Doge's Palace. I imagined that the Bridge of Sighs was also somewhere to my right, since it connected the Doge's Palace to the prisons.

This was my second spirit dream. The first time…I had been terrified out of my wits. I had been surrounded by evil vampire magic and had been too terrified to talk much with Adrian. Even now, I still carried a little fear of vampire magic. But the setting around me was so beautiful and peaceful….what could be wrong with it? It wouldn't harm me, and I wouldn't be corrupted just by being in a spirit dream. Besides, I'd always wanted to visit Venice (besides Rome and Florence).

I heard footsteps behind me, and turned around. My heart beat faster. "Adrian," I whispered.

He was dressed in a blue silk shirt, and jeans that looked amazing on him. I wondered if they were designer brand.

"Hello, lily girl," he murmured, bending down to kiss my lips. I wrapped my arms around him and was lost in the bliss for a moment before he pulled away. "You look gorgeous tonight."

I looked down at myself. I wore a blue silk tank dress with sandals. When I reached back to touch my hair, I felt that it had been pulled into a side braid. I pulled my skirt up a little and I saw that my bruise had been magically healed.

"How on earth did I end up like this?" I asked in wonder. I would never choose anything like this to wear in real life…especially since I didn't have that many clothes that had color. My wardrobe was nice, but mostly made up of nondescript colors, like black, brown, white, and beige.

He shrugged. "Guess your subconscious wanted to wear that. Also, I let you choose our dream location tonight."

"'Choose our dream location?'" I repeated, feeling confused.

Adrian gazed off into the distance, and his gaze became slightly unfocused. "I'm not really sure how this works. Like…when I talk to people in their dreams, I usually just think about where I want us to be, and we're there. But for you…I just used my magic to reach out to you to make the connection. After I got the 'sense' that you wanted to be in Venice…I just let my memories and spirit do the rest."

"You've been here before?" I asked, staring around me in wonder. Venice was _beautiful_. It had once been known as the "Bride of the Sea" because it depended heavily on trading for a living.

"Yep," Adrian said. "It was…oh, maybe three to four years ago. I think this place is a mix of my memories, and maybe a combination of how it looks today, but I'm not sure." He paused for a moment to look at me. "Are you alright? Or do you want me to let you out of the dream?"

"I don't want you to let me out," I said. "This place is beautiful. How could it be scary?"

He smiled at me. "I guess that's an improvement, especially compared to the first time I spoke to you in your dreams. Where would you like to go first?"

"I want to look at the Bridge of Sighs," I said, and he led me past the Doge's Palace and I gazed at the Bridge of Sighs.

"Why is it called the Bridge of Sighs?" Adrian asked.

I opened my mouth to speak, but closed it again. "Do you really want to hear all about it?" I asked.

He laughed, but turned serious. "Tell me all you would like to say, and don't dumb it down for me."

"The Bridge of Sighs was constructed in 1662, and built over the Rio di Palazzo. It's said that prisoners got their last view of Venice from here, and sighed." I looked over at Adrian to see if he was bored, but he just nodded for me to go on. "Lord Byron gave it the name the Bridge of Sighs, and up till then, it was called the Prison's Bridge. There's also a local legend that couples will be granted eternal love if they kiss on a gondola at sunset under the Bridge of Sighs."

"We definitely need to add a gondola to tonight's itinerary," Adrian said with a slight smirk. He leaned in for a kiss, and my heart pounded even faster than usual. He moved his lips to the side of my neck, and I let out several sighs.

He pulled away from me, and asked, "Where do you want to go now?"

"The Doge's Palace," I said, pointing up at the beautiful structure in front of us.

As Adrian led me through the courtyard and up the stairs, he admitted, "I don't actually know much about this place. I wasn't really listening the first time I came here."

I laughed. "I'll be your tour guide."

"I think you'd be a lot more interesting than that Italian girl who was guiding us," Adrian murmured as the doors swung open.

I gaped up at the ceiling above us. The ceiling was exquisitely painted with figures that looked like they came from the Renaissance, and gilded in gold. "It's so beautiful," I said, staring at the ceiling.

"If I had the power to take you anywhere in the real world, I would've taken you to Italy," Adrian said, also studying the ceiling above us. "To your dream locations, especially Rome and Florence."

"I'm surprised my subconscious didn't want Rome," I said as we kept walking and climbed up the stairs.

"Well, Venice is one of the most romantic cities in the world, right?" Adrian asked. "Besides Paris, the City of Light. Maybe you wanted to come to a romantic city."

I smiled, surprised he knew where the romantic cities were. "Yes, it is."

"Tell me more about the Doge's Palace," Adrian said.

I paused to compose my thoughts, and so I could tell him about the Doge's Palace without him falling asleep. But the way he looked at me…it looked like he would be interested in everything and anything I said.

"The Doge's Palace is where the doge, or the ruling duke, lived and was also the seat of power in Venice. It was built to show the power and wealth of Venice. There are law courts, administrative offices, courtyards, ballrooms, and prisons within the Doge's Palace. Construction of the south side facing the water began in 1340. It was the seat of Venetian power for 700 years until Venice fell to Napoleon in 1797."

Adrian paused, taking in all that information. He actually looked very interested. "Are we going to explore the Doge's Palace, or are we going elsewhere?"

"Let's go elsewhere," I suggested. "I don't want to waste too much time when I don't know how long we have."

He smirked. "Don't you want to explore the Bridge of Sighs, and the prisons? I thought you'd want to see how they look like."

"No thanks!" I said as we walked out of the Doge's Palace and headed for the Torre dell'Orologio (the Clock Tower). There was a giant winged lion, and a clock made up of the zodiac.

"It connects St. Mark's Square with the Rialto," I said. "It was built in 1496. The two bronze figures represent the passing of time. The zodiac clock moves slightly slower to show the position of the sun in the zodiac."

"Fascinating," Adrian muttered, but he didn't sound sarcastic. "You know everything there is to know about…anything, really."

I felt pleased at his compliment, but felt a negative feeling stir over my heart. "I doubt it. If I really knew everything, my father wouldn't be so judgmental."

Adrian's face grew solemn. "I know how that feels like, Sydney."

And he did. When I'd driven him out to San Diego to meet with his father….well. Lord Ivashkov was as harsh as my own father was to me, to put it mildly.

There was an awkward silence between us, and then I said, "Let's go into St. Mark's Basilica."

"Your wish is my command," Adrian said with an exaggerated bow, and I laughed.

* * *

As we walked out of the courtyard to St. Mark's basilica, I studied the Tetrarchs to the side. I'd read they'd been looted from Constantinople and that they'd been around since the beginnings of Venice.

We entered the basilica, and Adrian kept very quiet even inside the basilica.

I looked to my left, and there was a mosaic that showed how St. Mark's body was carried back to Venice from Alexandria. I supposed they'd done it to make Venice more prestigious back in those days. The original basilica had been burnt down in 976.

I crossed myself as I lingered under the mosaic.

"You know, I'm not much of a religious person, but this basilica is still pretty impressive," Adrian said, keeping his voice low.

"Of course," I said lightly. "The basilica was built over Mark's bones and he was made the patron saint of Venice."

We then turned to the nave of the church. It was extremely dark, and my eyes had trouble adjusting. Adrian, with his superior eyesight, didn't seem to have a problem. I looked up and saw that the top of the nave was decorated by Byzantine style mosaics. We looked through the other mosaics, and eventually I caught sight of the bronze horses.

"They're pretty impressive," I murmured, staring up at the horses, who were all holding different poses. No one actually knew how old the four horses were.

* * *

"Now where do you want to go next?" Adrian asked as we walked out of the church. I was nearly blinded by the sunlight outside since it was so dark inside St. Mark's.

"Let's go look at the masks and glass," I suggested.

Adrian raised his eyebrow at me. How were his eyes so impossibly green? Were real emeralds as green and dark as his eyes? I shooed the thought out of my mind. "Never figured you to be a shopper, Sage."

"I'm not," I protested as we crossed through St. Mark's Square towards one of the many alleys. "But I've always admired how beautiful and colorful the masks are, and they're all different. Masks have always been a big part in the Carnival of Venice, and the first mention of masks in Venice dates back to the 13th century. No one knows why Venetians started wearing masks."

"Maybe they wanted to disguise themselves and meet up with secret lovers," Adrian said in a mock serious voice. A green Volto mask suddenly appeared in his hand, and I gasped and stumbled back a step.

"Was that too much?" Adrian asked, his voice full of concern.

"I'm fine," I managed to say. "That was a bit abrupt. If you're going to make things appear out of thin air, could you at least give me some warning?"

Adrian nodded and then covered up his face with the mask. "How do I look? Devastatingly sexy?"

I couldn't help but laugh as we continued walking. "That just hides your face! How would that make you look devastatingly sexy as you so charmingly put it?"

"It gives me an air of mystery," he said in what I supposed he thought was a mysterious voice.

I just laughed some more. "If I ran into you wearing that on the street, I would ask if you were attending a masquerade ball."

"You've given me a new idea for a party if I ever have one," Adrian said with mock seriousness as he took the mask off and made it vanish.

We passed shop windows filled with all sorts of masks – Bauta, Columbina, Medico della Peste, Moretta, and Volto masks. I thought that Columbina masks – the masks that only covered half of one's face, much like the one Jill had worn at the fashion show – were the prettiest.

I kept peering into the windows at the masks. Along the way, there were windows with Venetian glass. I wondered if they'd actually been made in Venice, or had been made somewhere in China and then shipped here. Some of the signs said, Not made in China, but that made it funnier.

I gasped when my eye fell on a Columbina mask. It was a pale purple, decorated with gold glitter and some flowers. The ribbons were the same pretty purple color. "That mask is absolutely beautiful."

Adrian looked at the mask, and than at me. "You know, that purple is like the flecks of purple I see in your aura," he said.

I remembered Adrian had once mentioned to me he saw purple in my aura, but he didn't tell me what it meant. I'd asked Sonya, and then she'd said that it was a complex color, and that it was a spiritual but passionate color, and those who loved deeply and sought a higher calling had that color in their aura. I smiled.

"Why don't you get that mask to come over here?" I asked.

He closed his eyes in concentration, and the mask disappeared from the window and into my hand. I gasped and nearly dropped it.

"Sorry," Adrian murmured, deftly catching it.

"It's okay," I said very softly. I really would have to get used to all this magic.

_This dream isn't hurting you_, I reminded myself sternly. _There's nothing to be scared of_.

I reached behind me to tie the ribbons, but my fingers couldn't quite tie the ribbon. Then I felt Adrian's hand over mine, and shivered a little.

"Allow me," Adrian said, his voice a little husky as he tied the ribbon around the back of my head.

"How do I look?" I asked, striking what I hoped was a model's pose.

"Sexy," Adrian whispered. "Dead sexy."

I wondered how the mask made me look sexy, but I wasn't about to ask questions. "Can we take a gondola ride?"

"Sure," Adrian said, leading me down an alley and towards the water. A gondola with only two seats rocked gently in the water.

I sat down in the gondola, but it nearly tipped over, and I had to cling on to the edges. Adrian nearly leapt in. I looked around, but there wasn't a rope tying the gondola to land. The gondola slowly started gliding away from the buildings and further out into the water.

"This is one of the best ways to see Venice," Adrian said. "Of course, it'd be more romantic with music, but I don't know how to sing or play any instruments."

I smiled and took off my mask so I'd be able to see my surroundings better. "It's romantic enough."

We glided by a few building. The water lapped at the bottom of the buildings, and I sighed.

To my surprise, we were soon in front of St. Mark's Square. "I could've sworn we walked for twenty minutes," I said in surprise.

Adrian laughed. "I can alter our surroundings a little so that we're at our destination a little faster than originally getting there."

I now raised my eyes to the sky and was surprised to see that the sun was going down, and it was now sunset. "Get us to the Bridge of Sighs." _And so we can kiss and be granted eternal love_, I added silently since I would never say that aloud.

"Yes, ma'am," Adrian said, and the gondola was soon smoothly sailing under the Bridge of Sighs.

When we were directly under the Bridge of Sighs, I leaned in and kissed Adrian hard, wrapping my arms around his neck. He was surprised at the force of my kiss, but kissed me back eagerly. It felt like fire as our lips met, and I just wanted to continue kissing him, and just losing myself in the feel of him.

I finally let go, and was surprised to see that the Bridge of Sighs was long gone out of sight. "W-where are we?"

"No idea," Adrian said cheerfully as he wrapped his arms around me and held me close. I buried my face into his shoulder. He smelled like cologne, but there wasn't too much, which I liked.

Suddenly the area around us started getting darker. "What's happening?" I asked in alarm.

"It's probably almost time to wake up," Adrian said, sounding very reluctant. "We've probably been sharing this dream the whole night."

"Already?" I didn't want the dream to end. I sort of just wanted to stay here, and just let the dream last forever.

"Time passes quickly," Adrian said. He leaned in and kissed my lips. "Good night, Sydney."

* * *

**Author's note**: Sorry I haven't written in so long! Band camp kept me busy for a whole week, and I wanted this chapter to come out just right. Although I've been to Venice before, I wanted to do some extra research on the landmarks in Venice to make the dream as "realistic" as possible. Thank goodness for Rick Steves' _Mediterranean Cruises_ and Wikipedia for all the information :) Hope you enjoy, and as always, ideas/reviews greatly appreciated!


	7. A Stroll Through Florence

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 7 A Stroll Through Florence

The next morning, I remembered I had to call the Alchemists for permission to attend the Royal Court for Sonya's wedding. I couldn't help but wonder if they would hold _me_ back from going.

I wasn't surprised when Stanton seemed extremely doubtful about the need of my presence in attending the wedding. "Why would you need to go with them, Ms. Sage? I'm sure they can handle going to the Court by themselves, since they wouldn't need extra help. Besides, the Court is the center of vampires."

"Yes, but I'm part of the group, and I want to make sure everything goes along smoothly," I responded. "What about Jill – I mean, Ms. Mastrano? She would like to go as well, since she was invited by Sonya."

"She may have to remain behind. The danger is too great for her to reappear at Court," Stanton said dismissively.

I then recalled Jill's mention of Adrian using his spirit to disguise her, but thought it was better not to mention it. There was going to be no way that I could appear to be advocating the use of vampire magic. "We could give her a disguise of some sort. Maybe we could give her some hair dye and new contacts, since I think she would really like to attend the wedding."

There was a pause on the other end. "That is a very good suggestion, Ms. Sage. Perhaps there is a way for all of you to attend the wedding after all. Please wait a moment."

I patiently waited for five minutes while being on hold on the phone. Finally she came back to the phone and said, "Your request to go to Court has been approved. The wedding is in a week, so you will leave from LAX on the 20th, and you will return to Palm Springs by the 26th."

"Thank you, ma'am," I said politely. We were actually going to go to the Moroi Court. I was actually surprised that she had given us permission to attend.

"I want you to keep an eye on the Dragomir girl at all times. Make sure she is protected from harm, or we will have a civil war on our hands," Stanton said grimly. "If she dies…well. To say we would have a huge crisis on our hands would be an understatement. I'm not even sure if we could cover it up if a civil war breaks out."

"Yes, ma'am," I said.

"I'll give you more details later." With that, our conversation ended.

I put down my phone. If I was at Court, away from the prying eyes of the Alchemists…

_No. You can't go around doing inappropriate things_, a part of me scolded.

Something occurred to me, and my heart sank. How were we supposed to explain why I – an Alchemist – was at Court? We rarely walked into the heart of Moroi and dhampir life unless something big had happened – like the investigation of Queen Tatiana's murder. Most of the time, we dealt with my kind, not with vampires like I did on an everyday basis.

I sighed, and walked down to Jill's and Angeline's room. I'd have to worry about that later. I knocked.

Angeline opened the door, and to my surprise, her long blond hair looked like it had been straightened. "Jill just got up."

"Can I still come in?" I asked, warily eyeing Angeline. It looked like she'd even put on a little eyeliner and just a teeny hint of lip gloss. Ever since coming to Amberwood, I now could tell if someone had put on just a smidgen of make-up. Don't ask how I know.

Angeline opened the door wider, and my jaw nearly hit the floor.

"_Why_ on earth are you wearing that?" I gasped, my eyes almost bugging out of their sockets.

Besides Angeline's perfectly straight hair and make-up, she was wearing a red strapless dress that only came down to four inches past her thighs and the neckline…it was a deep plunging V-neck that showed more than a little of her cleavage. To complete the look, she was also wearing five inch black stilettos that made her tower over me.

Angeline shrugged. "I'm going on a date with Eddie."

"You're just going overboard!" I protested. God knew how Eddie was going to react if he saw her like that.

"You _never_ wear anything bright, so of course you'd say something like that," Angeline retorted. "This is perfectly normal for anyone going on a date."

"I do wear bright colors!" Like my Halloween costume. "And that's just…ugh. That's just going way overboard! You want to impress Eddie, but not make him think you're…easy." Was I really encouraging her to date Eddie when Jill was miserably wallowing in her heartbreak over him?

"You think I'm trying to dress up like a slut?" Angeline spat, her blue eyes flashing with fury. "Well at least I _have_ a boyfriend, unlike you."

That really stung. I glared at her. I had a boyfriend, no matter what any of them – except Jill – seemed to think. And I'd used to date Brayden before he broke up with me (not that it had caused me any heartbreak…quite the opposite, actually). "I did go out with Brayden for some time. And at least I'm not advertising my body and showing it off!" I immediately checked myself. When had I started losing control? I was _always_ in control. I took a deep breath.

"Angeline, that's just not the right way to dress for a boyfriend. You want to appear classy, but not like…what I said. Easy."

"This isn't even close to what would make a girl easy," Angeline said coolly, crossing her arms and glaring at me. "I have a dress that would show even more-"

"Okay, enough," I said, holding a hand up. Then the rest of her comment sank in. "Wait, how'd you even get this dress?"

"I saved up money," Angeline said proudly. "And Eddie gave me some too."

Eddie giving his money to his…I couldn't think it. "Oh. Well. But don't you think you want to be a little less….flashy?"

"This is a good dress," Angeline argued. "It was-"

Her words were cut off by Jill entering the room. Her long wavy brown hair spilled down her back, and she was wearing a simple green ruffled top that matched her eyes with jeans. She came to a halt when she saw Angeline, and her eyes widened in shock.

"Angeline…why are you dressed like that?" I wasn't the only one thinking that Angeline had overdone it.

"I'm going on a date with Eddie," Angeline bragged.

Jill's face fell, although Angeline didn't seem to notice. "Oh…I hope you guys have fun," she added, trying to smile.

"Thanks," Angeline said, turning back to the mirror so she could check her appearance.

"But…I think that's a bit too much for the first date," Jill offered tentatively. "Because I don't think Eddie wants a girl to be…well…uhm, super dolled up."

Angeline turned around and looked puzzled. "Really? Then what would he like?"

Wow. Angeline really did have a crush on Eddie if she cared about what he'd think. And why would she listen to Jill instead of me?

Jill tilted her head, looking at Angeline. "That's way too much for him. You should probably go with the blue dress. Besides, Mrs. Weathers would probably march you back in here and not let you leave if she saw you like that."

Angeline shrugged and strode toward her closet. She pulled out a pale blue halter-neck dress and silver three inch heels. "Is this better?"

"Yeah," Jill said.

We turned around and waited for Angeline to change. When we turned back around…whoa. The dress complimented her eyes and was a lot more understated compared to the red dress.

"That looks much classier and prettier without overdoing it," I said lightly.

"You think?" Angeline asked as she regarded herself in the mirror and fluffed her hair out a little.

"Let's go," Jill said quietly, getting to her feet.

We walked down into the lobby where Mrs. Weathers sat. Luckily, Jill had convinced Angeline to wear a trench coat over the dress so it wouldn't be super obvious that she was going on a date.

I wondered where Angeline and Eddie were planning to go anyway. If anyone saw them…that would definitely blow our cover. Angeline and Eddie were supposed to be "cousins" after all…

Eddie was sitting in a chair that faced the door. He heard us coming and jumped up. His eyes widened when he saw Angeline. I couldn't tell what he was thinking as he gazed at her.

Then his eyes fell on Jill, and something softened in his eyes. It was a surprise, since he was always the hard stoic warrior. Something flashed in his eyes – regret?

I looked at Jill, and the same emotion was mirrored in her green eyes. I couldn't tell exactly what emotion it was, and the moment ended when he turned to Angeline.

* * *

Later that afternoon, I suddenly remembered that I had been promising to look into Marcus Finch. Everything that had happened over the past weeks had completely driven him from my mind, and I berated myself for having forgotten as I took out my laptop and went to the Alchemist information base.

There wasn't much to go on with the information I already had. He was an ex-Alchemist, but Stanton had claimed she had never heard of him before. He had helped Clarence get away from the Warriors of Light. A photo Clarence had given me revealed that he had once had a golden lily tattoo on his cheek – a tattoo only the Alchemists had.

Why would Stanton lie to me about having never heard of him before?

Once you were part of the Alchemists, you could never walk out. You couldn't turn your back on a society that had a duty to humanity to protect them from the darkness of vampires. And once you were an Alchemist, you were bound to them for the rest of your life.

The "ex-Alchemists" we had were locked away in reeducation centers, like Keith Darnell. No one could purposely turn their back on the Alchemists and just leave. And yet…

Was it possible that Marcus Finch had been able to escape from the Alchemists?

All these questions swirled in my head as I typed in the name "Marcus Finch." Nothing came up, and I sighed in frustration.

I leaned back in my chair, my mind going overtime. If Marcus Finch had once been part of the Alchemists, and then left, of course the Alchemists wouldn't want anyone to know that. Why would they want to let anyone know about that type of information? Some of us who were discontented with being Alchemists might do what he did – leave the Alchemists.

I couldn't help but wonder what had made him choose to leave the Alchemists. Not that I hadn't thought of it myself a few times. That traitorous thought had come up more often now that I was dating Adrian, more times than I would care to admit.

I could never turn my back on the Alchemists. I disapproved of the highhanded way they acted sometimes, but I still believed in their principles.

Humans had to be kept unaware of the darkness of vampires. They could never learn of even the Moroi, or they would soon learn of the Strigoi, and work for them in the false hope of turning immortal and twisted.

As I closed my laptop, I hoped that Adrian would appear in my dreams tonight. I felt exhausted, and I wanted to relax a little, even if it was just in my dreams.

* * *

That night, after I closed my eyes, I was standing in front of the Duomo in Florence.

Was I really in one of my dream cities, besides Rome? I looked around. I was definitely in Florence.

"Adrian?" I called out tentatively. I heard footsteps to my left, and turned around.

He looked absolutely gorgeous tonight, and that was really saying something. He was wearing a short-sleeved green shirt that rivaled the color of his eyes and jeans. "I decided to bring you to Florence."

I looked up at the Duomo towering above us. It actually reminded me a little of the Duomo in Pisa, in the Field of Miracles with the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The neo-gothic exterior was very intricate and detailed. "Can we go in?"

"Of course." Adrian said as he led me into the cathedral. "But let's not walk up to the dome. That'll take too much time, and I want to save some time for you to look at the Accademia and walk over the Ponte Vecchio."

The interior was very large and spacious. Sunlight spilled through the stained glass windows and illuminated the entire church. I looked up, and noticed that the ceiling was supported by what appeared to be flying buttresses, like those at Notre Dame.

"What's with the clock above the door?" Adrian asked, and I turned around to see him pointing at a huge clock.

I looked up at it, examining the four portraits in the corner. "It's a twenty-four hour clock from the 18th century. It's one of the few clocks from that time period that still actually works."

We continued walking until we were under the dome, and I pointed upward. "Look."

Directly under the dome was a very large, colorful painting titled _The Last Judgment_. I suspected that the paintings in the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo were even more striking, but this was a very impressive piece of art. Adrian was studying the painting too, and I wondered if he was impressed by it, since he was an art student.

"Can we go to the Accademia?" I asked, and Adrian led me out of the Duomo.

"It's closer to the Duomo than the Ponte Vecchio," he explained as we passed by the Medici-Riccardi Palace.

We entered the Accademia, and turned down a hall. _David_ was at the far end under a dome.

I looked up at the _David_ statue, feeling very tiny as I gazed up at him. He was seventeen feet tall, for one thing, and the expression on his face….he was sizing up his enemy, preparing for attack.

Adrian looked at me, and then at David. "So does he stand for something?"

"I think he stands for how, in the Renaissance period, people can use their minds and think of how to overcome complicated problems," I answered. "And here, Michelangelo is showing the moment that David is taking in the enemy, and thinking that he can kill him. He's standing in a classical pose called contrapposto."

"All I see is a big naked guy with a clenched fist who looks a bit constipated," Adrian quipped, and I laughed.

"He doesn't look constipated! You obviously don't pay attention in your art classes about expressions," I said.

Adrian pretended to look wounded as I circled around the _David_. "I pay plenty of attention in art classes! What are you talking about?"

"Fine, fine," I conceded. "But I also want to look at the _Prisoners_."

Adrian led me over to our left. He raised his eyebrows when he saw it. "Not exactly finished, is it?"

"It's not," I admitted. "I'm not really sure why Michelangelo never finished it. But just look at the skill and detail of this! They look like they're just emerging from rock. The so-called _Awakening Prisoner_ is the least finished out of all of them." I pointed at one of the prisoners who looked like he had just woken up.

Adrian yawned. "Nothing against Michelangelo, Sage. But it seems a bit depressing. Looking at statues of prisoners isn't exactly how you'd want to spend a day - or a dream - in Florence."

"The Uffizi Gallery would've been more interesting," I admitted, "but there's so much to see there."

"Hey, Boticelli's _Birth of Venus_ was pretty awesome," Adrian protested as we walked out of the Accademia.

"Because Venus was _beautiful_?" I asked.

Adrian shook his head, and leaned in so that his lips were at my ear. "No one is as beautiful as you are, lily girl."

My heart raced as his closeness, and I keenly felt my loss when he leaned away. He took my hand and we started walking back the way we'd come, to the Ponte Vecchio.

* * *

I gasped as the Ponte Vecchio came into view. The Arno River, which ran under the bridge was a deep, sparkling blue, deeper than the sky.

"It's beautiful!" I exclaimed.

"Tell me something interesting about the bridge," Adrian said, leaning against the rail.

I shot him a look, but remembered that it was a dream. "It spans the Arno River at its narrowest point. Shops have always lined this bridge, and now there are shops selling gold and silver. This was the only bridge in Florence that wasn't destroyed during World War II when the Germans retreated."

"_This_ is the narrowest point?" Adrian asked, peering over the bridge at the river rushing below us. "Looks pretty wide if you ask me."

I frowned at him. "Come on. Let's cross the Ponte Vecchio."

"What's that even supposed to mean?" he asked as we started walking over the bridge. I looked into the shops, which proudly displayed gold and silver in their windows.

"It just means 'Old Bridge,' in Italian," I replied promptly.

"How many languages do you even know?" Adrian asked when we reached the midpoint of the bridge. The scenery was pretty everywhere we looked. Florence was really a charming city, and I hoped that someday I would return in person.

I shrugged, and counted them off on my free hand. "Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian, a little bit of Japanese..."

"How much is 'a little?'" Adrian asked, curious as he looked down at me with those stunning emerald eyes. I felt like I could just dive into them and swim forever, but I forced myself to focus on his question.

_Don't think about how endlessly green his eyes are_, I chided myself. Aloud, I answered, "Enough to order in restaurants, carry on a conversation, and go shopping."

"That's more than 'a little bit," Adrian murmured as we finally crossed the other side of the Ponte Vecchio.

I looked up, and sighed. The sky was an amazing vibrant mix of pale pink, deep purple, and light orange. It was sunset, here in the dream world. Ironically, the sunset meant that the night was over and we would have to wake up soon and return to the waking world.

"I'll see you tomorrow at Clarence's," Adrian murmured, kissing my lips before the dream faded away to black.

* * *

**Author's note**: I had to re-write this chapter – originally set in Rome – because of a review that said I was copying LGP's _The Door in the Tree_. That was truly not my intention, and I apologize to my readers if it seemed like I was copying her idea.

On another note – I already said this in my other story _Love that Lasts Forever _– I won't be updating this story as often. School's starting up in a few days, and I need to concentrate a lot on my schoolwork (being a high school student sucks). I won't give up on this story though – I will write whenever I have time, but it won't be as often as I usually do. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please review!


	8. Arrival at Court

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 8 Arrival at Court

As I was getting ready to go to the feeding at Clarence's, it occurred to me that Clarence might have information on the mysterious Marcus Finch. I hoped he did. If it was possible to get in touch with Marcus, I fully intended to do so.

I decided to dress up a little for Adrian. I wanted to beautify myself a little, which was really unlike me. I had never really wanted to pretty myself for Brayden.

I examined my reflection in the mirror. I decided not to apply any make-up today – except to hide my tattoo – and just go with the natural look.

I wore a powder blue scoop neck shirt and jeans, which was one of my most casual looks. I felt a little odd wearing the scoop neck, since it was rather low-cut, but covered it up with my jacket – which was, again, another "casual" piece of clothing I had.

I walked down to Jill's and Angeline's room and knocked. Jill answered the door, and said, "Angeline's getting ready." Her voice trembled as she spoke, and I wondered what was wrong, but there was no time to ask.

"We'll leave in about fifteen minutes," I said.

Eddie was waiting for us in the lobby, and I led them all out to Latte so we could drive to Clarence's for the feeding.

"Jill, you don't look too well," I heard Eddie tell Jill from the backseat when we were a few blocks from Clarence's house. She was sitting next to me, but since I was driving, I couldn't look.

"I'm fine," Jill whispered, her voice very soft.

"Is Adrian drinking again?" Eddie asked, his voice turning hard.

I wanted to jump in and defend Adrian, but I couldn't. Why did Eddie _always_ think so low of Adrian, even when he had cause to in the past? Besides Jill, no one else knew about our relationship. I was too wary to let anyone else in about this. Besides, to Amberwood, we were "sister" and "brother," just as Angeline and Eddie were "cousins."

"He's not drinking," Jill said flatly as we pulled up to Clarence's and got out.

I looked at her. Her green eyes were filled with a sadness that made her look older than she really was, and her shoulders were slumped. She looked even paler than usual, and I suspected that her lack of blood wasn't the only reason she looked unwell.

Was she still heartbroken over Eddie? There couldn't be any other reason why she looked so dejected.

I led the group up to Clarence's, and knocked.

Adrian opened the door. Although he didn't say anything to me, his eyes seemed to shine with happiness when he saw me. "Come in."

"Do you suddenly live here now?" Eddie asked as we walked in.

"I have my own apartment," Adrian retorted, and gestured us down the hall to Clarence's living room. "I'm going to go to the kitchen." He walked down to the kitchen, and I longed to be able to follow him.

After Sonya had left following her kidnapping by the Warriors of Light, Dimitri had stayed on in Palm Springs to watch over Clarence a little longer. I wondered how much longer he was planning to stay. He was probably eager to return to Court so he could be reunited with Rose again.

We greeted Clarence and Dimitri, and then Jill went to get her feeding. Eddie distracted Clarence by asking more about the Warriors of Light, and I went to the other side of the room to fill Dimitri in on our plans to return to Court. "How much longer are you going to stay here?" I asked softly.

"I'm planning on returning to Court when you go next week," he said softly, making sure to keep his voice low enough. "I was already planning to go back soon, and this is around the perfect time."

I nodded. "Then should I ask Stanton to book another plane ticket?"

Dimitri shook his head. "No, I'll take care of it myself."

Adrian then walked over to us. "Sydney, could I have a word with you?"

I nodded, and then walked with him. I was conscious of the eyes of Eddie, Angeline, and Clarence boring into us as we walked away. When I peeked under my hair, I saw that Dimitri had retreated to a couch, and had pulled out a Western paperback.

We reached one of the bathrooms, and Adrian quickly shut the door behind him.

"Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?" I asked, keeping at least a few inches of distance between us.

"Not really," Adrian said.

I looked up at him, confused. "Then…why did you say you wanted to speak to me alone?"

"So I could do this," Adrian whispered, pulling me to him and kissing me.

This kiss was…hot. Sensual, and full of passion. I had never been kissed like this before, and I had to admit, I liked it. This kiss was also nothing like the kisses I'd shared with Adrian in our dreams of the flower field, and in Venice.

His lips were so fierce on mine, and I felt slightly tingly in an area lower in my body. I felt hot all over, like maybe I would melt. I put my arms around his neck and held him tight so I wouldn't collapse onto the floor.

When I had kissed Brayden, I had _never_ felt passion or love. I hadn't really felt anything except that it was like kissing a friend, and that kissing was overrated.

But this? This was a completely different category of kisses.

As we kissed, I felt him brush my long hair out of the way before he stopped kissing my lips and trailed warm, gentle kisses down my neck and along my shoulder. His gentle kisses were so different from that passionate kiss, but still made me feel warm all over.

"We should probably go out, Sage," he murmured as he stopped kissing me. "We don't want them to get suspicious of why we're in the bathroom alone."

"One more kiss?" I pleaded in a whisper. _This isn't like me at all_, I thought, but I ignored it. I wanted him to kiss me, and I wasn't letting my doubts get in the way.

"Fine," Adrian murmured, and kissed my lips only for a moment.

"That wasn't one more kiss," I protested as he opened the door.

"It'll have to do, lily girl," he murmured as we walked back to the others.

I was really glad that none of the others controlled spirit, or they would've seen signs that something was going on between me and Adrian.

I cleared my throat, and Clarence was the only one who looked up. Jill was busy talking to Dimitri about Sonya's wedding, although she left out that it was at Court. Angeline and Eddie were holding hands and whispering to each other.

"Mr. Donahue," I began. "A few weeks ago, you mentioned that Marcus Finch stopped some of the younger members of the Warriors of Light from harassing you. Is it possible for you to get in touch with Marcus Finch? I would like to contact him and ask him a few questions."

"Perhaps," Clarence said, his eyes seemingly distant and faraway. "When he helped me out, it was a few years ago. He might have moved or changed his contact information. From what I understand, he's constantly moving around, and doesn't stick to one place."

Since Marcus was an ex-Alchemist, this made sense. He would constantly have to move around and change information so that the Alchemists couldn't track him down. I would bet money – if I had a lot, that was – that he'd probably changed his name a few times too. It wouldn't be impossible for the Alchemists to track him if they could catch him once, but all the moving, changing information, and assuming false identities would definitely make it a _lot_ harder. I felt my respect for this unknown Marcus growing. What could he have done or seen that would make him escape from the Alchemists?

"Well, could you please get in contact with him if it's possible? It's important," I said.

"I'll look for the information when I can," he said.

I thanked him, and said to the others, "Let's go."

"I'm going to be heading home next week," Dimitri said as we walked out the door.

I couldn't hear Clarence's reply as the door shut behind us. Adrian was about to head off to his Mustang – it was an amazing car – but Jill called out to him. "Adrian?"

Adrian looked up, and his face softened. "What's up, Jailbait?"

"I think…I have an idea for how I can go to Court without anyone suspecting that it's me," Jill said tentatively. "Is it possible for you to be able to disguise me with spirit?"

Adrian raised his eyebrows at her, clearly impressed. "That's a good idea. I'm not as good as disguising people as Sonya, but I'm sure we could manage. Especially if anyone has silver."

"What?" I asked, confused. _What does silver have anything to do with disguises?_

"You know how some spirit users can disguise people, right?" Eddie asked as we walked down the pathway to Latte. I nodded – Rose had used one to hide her identity when she had come to talk to me. "Well, it's a lot more effective if silver is used. If the person being disguised wears silver charmed with spirit…I think it enhances the spirit being used."

I shivered. More vampire magic. I wasn't afraid of the dreams anymore. But using spirit in the real world?

Jill and Adrian conferred for a few more moments, and then they walked over to us. "Sage, you're going with us to Court, right?" Adrian asked. I nodded. "How do you plan on explaining why you're there? Alchemists never come to Court, unless something big happened."

I sighed. "I don't know. And Moroi and dhampirs can tell the difference. They'll know I'm human, and I don't know how to explain it." I was a little surprised he had also thought of this problem.

He hesitated for a moment. "I know your hang-up about…magic…but I could use spirit to disguise you as a dhampir. It would avoid unnecessary questions about why an Alchemist travelled with us back to Court. Only other spirit users – like Sonya and Lissa – should be able to detect it's you."

I thought it over for a moment, forcing down my fear of vampire magic. Despite my fear of magic, I had to admit, it would come in handy for something like this. I would be able to go to Court and not have to worry about being recognized. "Yeah. You can use spirit to disguise me, and we can go incognito." _The less trouble at Court the better_.

Adrian nodded. "But I need to get some silver jewelry so I can spell it with magic for the disguise."

I frowned. "I don't have any silver jewelry."

"I have some," Jill volunteered.

"Sydney can drive over and give it to me sometime this week," Adrian said, looking at me with a significant look.

I smiled to myself as we said our good-byes and I started driving back to Amberwood. _Maybe we could have some alone time at his apartment_.

Later that day, I called Adrian and asked when he wanted me to drive over with Jill's silver jewelry.

"Maybe you could come over right now, Sage," Adrian said.

"Do you really want to see me that badly?" I teased.

"Yes," Adrian answered. "I do. Do you know how hard it is just to see you in our dreams? Being with you in real life is a lot better."

"I'll come over right now," I said. "But I can't stay more than twenty minutes, or it'll look really fishy."

We hung up, and I drove Latte to Adrian's apartment.

* * *

When Adrian opened his door, there was a slight smile on his face. "Glad to see you, Sage."

"Hey, we just saw each other five hours ago," I remarked as he shut the door behind me.

Adrian shrugged. "I'm always happy to see you, no matter how often times we've met."

I fished out the jewelry bag and handed it to Adrian. He put it down. "This might take me awhile. I have the general concept of how to make the disguises, but besides that, I'm not that skilled."

"Aren't you going to start on charming the jewelry?" I asked, puzzled. "You said it would take some time."

"Not yet," Adrian murmured. There was an intense note to his voice that made me shiver all over.

"Why not?" I asked.

Without answering me, Adrian pulled me towards him and kissed me.

I kissed him back, wrapping my arms around him as we made our way to the couch. It felt even hotter than when we had kissed at Clarence's. His kisses were gentle and soft at first, then growing fiercer and more passionate.

His tongue gently brushed against my lips. I opened my mouth a little and our tongues gently danced with each other's. It was like we were saying "hello," but we weren't using words to do so.

I felt him brush his hand up against my lower back, under my shirt. Strangely, even though he was touching my skin, I didn't want to push him away. I couldn't bring myself to do it. His touch on my bare skin was very sensual, and felt forbidden.

We kept kissing as he stroked my back under my thin top. I gently pulled my lips away from his. He was breathing heavily.

"Was that too much for you?" he asked, trying to take his hand away, but I stopped him and shook my head.

"No. Because I wanted to do this," I said, and pressed my lips against his neck, at his jugular vein. I kissed his neck until I came to the point where his neck met his shoulder, and pulled away. His skin felt very soft and smooth under my lips.

I lay my head against his chest, and I could feel his heartbeat fluttering erratically. "Are you listening to my heart, Sage?" he asked, slipping his arm around my shoulder.

I nodded, snuggling into him further, and he kissed the top of my head. "Just always know this, Sydney. My heart belongs to you, and only you."

* * *

Rose was waiting for us when we pulled in past the gates to Court at around eight at night – but "morning" for those running on a nocturnal schedule. We parked in one of the side parking lots – we had to rent two cars – and got out.

When Dimitri got out, he went straight to her. They just held hands and looked into each other's eyes but it seemed like they were saying a million things just with their eyes. A conversation without words. I let out a slight sigh. If only my relationship with Adrian was as perfect as theirs.

Adrian lightly touched my shoulder, and I felt warm at his touch.

Dimitri bent down to kiss Rose's cheek, and still managed to look graceful while doing it. Rose turned from him, and called, "Welcome to Court!"

Angeline's blue eyes were wide as she took in Court. Out of all of us, she was the only one who had never been to Court. Even I'd been to Court, all those months ago.

Rose greeted Adrian, whom I was glad to see was merely friendly towards her, and Eddie, Angeline, and Jill. She turned to us, and her eyes narrowed in thought. "I'm guessing you're supposed to be Sydney and Jill, right?"

I nodded. "Is it that obvious?"

Rose shrugged as she slipped her hand into Dimitri's. "Nah. There aren't any other people who could be hiding under spirit disguises. It's only those of us who are in on the secret – the only other people are Lissa and Sonya – who will know."

"What about our luggage?" Eddie asked.

Rose shrugged. "I sent word to Lissa, and she'll have someone pick it up for you."

"Where are we staying?" I asked as Rose and Dimitri led us past fountains and gardens. I was still struck by how impressive the Court was. The cover story was that it was an elite university. The buildings sort of looked like they belonged right back in pre-revolution Russia.

"Guest housing," Rose explained. "Separate rooms for everyone. Adrian, are you going to stay with your dad?"

"Hell no," Adrian responded, and I was glad that he sounded normal. When I peeked a glance at him, he looked like he was just talking to a friend. I smiled to myself. "Do you think I'd stay with that asshole after L.A?"

Rose held up her free hand. "Hey, just checking. Good thing Liss asked for an extra room to be prepared."

"You still call her Liss?" Dimitri asked disapprovingly. "Don't forget, she's the queen now."

Rose gave him a very cheeky look. "But you're also forgetting I've been her best friend since we were five, so I get a pass. What's she going to do? Order someone to chop off my head?"

Dimitri shook his head, and muttered a few curse words in Russian. I couldn't catch all of it but I caught one phrase that sounded like "damn my Roza."

They led us to the section for guest housing, and Rose pointed out which rooms had been assigned to us. I noted that Adrian's room was next to mine.

"Did you guys have dinner yet?" Rose asked us.

"Airplane food sucks," Eddie said.

"Then head to the cafeteria," Rose said. "I probably have to head back to Lissa. Eddie and Adrian, show them where it is."

She said her goodbyes to the rest of us, promising to catch up later, and left with Dimitri.

"I'm starving," Eddie said in the quiet that resulted. "Can we go?"

"Our luggage hasn't arrived yet," I protested, looking down at my cell phone.

Adrian shrugged. "I'm sure there's nothing to steal from your suitcase of business attire."

I ignored his jibe, and sighed. Everyone else looked very hungry from the long flight. "Fine. You guys go on ahead. I'll just wait here in my room." Actually, I was pretty hungry, but if I was hoping to slim down a little…

Eddie, Jill, and Angeline left. It was just me and Adrian. He gazed at me with those green eyes. "Sage, aren't you hungry?"

"Not really," I lied.

He narrowed his eyes at me. "You're lying."

"How would you know if I'm hungry or not?" I challenged, crossing my arms over my stomach self-consciously.

Adrian sighed. "For one thing, you barely ate anything on the flight. You freeloaded off me. And for another, I can see auras. I don't know how to actually describe it, but I know when someone's lying to me."

I didn't believe in auras or dream walking when I'd first learned about spirit. But now, my viewpoint was different. Dream walking was there…and Adrian and Sonya had talked to me about auras. Now I did believe in both auras and dream walking.

I sighed. He wasn't going to give up until I confessed. "Fine. I'm sort of hungry." _Starving, actually_.

Adrian pointed at me accusingly. "Aha! I knew it. Now, please just come to the cafeteria."

I shook my head. "I'll be fine!"

Adrian fixed me with his green eyes, and his voice softened. "Don't make me go over this again."

"It's not like I asked you to," I retorted, my anger rising. Yes, he was my boyfriend, and I loved him more than anyone else in the world. But _what_ made him think he had the right to start telling me that I was too skinny and that I needed to eat more? I was fine!

"No, you didn't. But as your…boyfriend, I think I need to talk to you about this. I'm not saying this to make you feel bad, or feel worse about your self-image! I love you the way you are. You're already plenty skinny enough. If you get any thinner, it's _won't _be healthy. Moroi and human bodies are vastly different, and that's just how it is. I bet if you weren't an Alchemist, you might even have a potential career as a model."

My breath caught at the words "I love you the way you are." _He loves me?_ I thought in wonder. I sort of wanted to just stand there and stare at him like he was a star but forced myself back to the issue at hand.

"You might think I look skinny, but I'm actually not. By my standards, it's-"

"I don't understand why you feel this way about yourself!" Adrian exclaimed. His voice was full of sadness. "But I just want you to know that you're beautiful the way you are, and I just don't want you to change. Please, Sydney. Just come with me, and eat something."

Looking into his eyes, I felt my resolve cracking. I _was_ pretty hungry…and if I didn't eat something, I'd be going for the next twelve hours without food. That didn't sound appealing, no matter how much I wanted to be skinny.

And his words….he also called me "beautiful."

That struck a chord with me.

I sighed. "Fine. Let's go to the cafeteria."

Adrian pecked a kiss on my cheek, and led me out of guest housing to the cafeteria.

* * *

**Author's note**: I'm amazed I even managed to get this up in less than a week...I guess because it was the first week of school (ew) and there wasn't too much homework. I don't know how often I'll manage to even write a chapter, so enjoy this chapter and review :)


	9. Sonya's Wedding

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 9 Sonya's Wedding

The next two days were very busy with preparations for Sonya's wedding. Jill was chosen to be the one of the bridesmaids, so she was whisked off to fittings a lot. The cover story was that she was one of Sonya's nieces – ironically, which was true – who hadn't visited Sonya in a while.

Everyone had to be sent to fittings for appropriate wedding wear. Although I had a good amount of nice clothing, none of them were appropriate for a wedding. Much to my dismay, I had been fitted in a square neck lavender silk dress that was at least two inches above my knees. I didn't mind wearing these types of dresses in my dreams, but no way was I wearing that in real life. I'd protested, but the dressmaker had sent me off with matching heels without listening to my protests.

In between all the fittings and adjusting to a vampire schedule, I'd managed to talk to Rose.

"How are things between you and Adrian?" she asked me, perching herself on my bed. It was my third night here, and this had been the only time so far that she'd been able to get some free time to talk with us. Being a guardian for the young queen was hard.

"It's going great," I responded.

Rose absently twirled a lock of her dark hair. "That's good to hear. You know things didn't end well between us."

I nodded. "But I really can't see him a lot. It's just too dangerous for us."

"What would even happen if your bosses caught you with Adrian?" she asked.

I shuddered. "I don't even want to think about it."

_Be locked up in re-education for the rest of my life. Probably in a padded jail cell with a straitjacket and chains_, I added mentally.

Rose sighed and laid her head on one of my pillows. "Hey, you're at Court, and I'm guessing the average Alchemist doesn't come here right?"

"There aren't any Alchemists stationed within 100 miles of Court," I admitted, "but is it still worth it to take the risk?"

"Don't forget, you're wearing a spirit disguise," she reminded me, pointing at the silver necklace sitting on the nightstand next to my bed. "Only those of us who know the disguise is there will know. It's a pretty good disguise. When I first saw you a few days ago, I couldn't recognize you."

"I just hope the magic won't wear out," I murmured. It was strange. I'd been taught to fear vampire magic and vampires all my life, yet now, I wasn't adhering to the strict rules the Alchemists had pounded into my head.

"It probably won't," she assured me. "Trust me. I'm like the spirit expert around here, even though I don't have a bond with Lissa anymore."

* * *

I was standing in front of Amberwood with Adrian, holding hands with him. It was dark, close to twilight.

Two Alchemists – identifiable by the golden lily tattoos on their cheeks – suddenly appeared. "Well, look what we have here," one said. "Sydney Sage, the exemplary Alchemist who's betraying the whole human race. You're just a fake."

"I'm not betraying the human race by going out with Adrian!" I screamed at them.

The other Alchemist _tsk_ed. "Your father will be so ashamed. He thought you had grown out of your rebelliousness, and become a model Alchemist. Luckily, he's trained Zoe to take your place."

"No! You can't brainwash Zoe!" I screamed as they pulled me away from Adrian. _No, not her! _Adrian was yelling at them to leave me alone, to let go of me. They didn't listen and placed handcuffs around my wrists and feet. "No! I won't be brainwashed! I won't stop loving Adrian!"

Everything around me turned to a gray fog, and when my surroundings became clear again, I was strapped to a metal table. The walls were white and sterile, and it looked like there were no exits. I was wearing a straitjacket, and my hands and feet were shackled. There was absolutely no escape for me.

I screamed. "LET ME GO!"

An Alchemist man was holding a clipboard. When the light fell on his face, it was revealed to be my father. Jared Sage.

"I'm very disappointed in you," he said, his voice aloof and impassive. "I expected better of you than this."

"Dad! How could you let them do to this to me?" I shouted, struggling against my restraints. "I'm not betraying the human race!"

"You are no longer my daughter. This is necessary, to erase the evil corruption from the association from those evil creatures of the night," my father said, and the coldness in his voice chilled me to the bone. He sounded like a ruthless, cold-blooded machine. "Be grateful you haven't been sent to somewhere else that's worse."

He then lifted something up and I screamed. It was a band that went around my head… for electroshock.

"NO!" I screamed as he put it around my head and connected it.

He pressed a button, and pain was radiating through my whole body. Electric sharp shocks were running everywhere, and I screamed louder.

I shot up straight in bed, my body soaked with sweat. My pulse was racing uncontrollably, and I tried to calm down, to no avail. _You're safe here. You're in your bed at Court_, I reiterated to myself as I got up and paced to erase the nightmare. Who would've thought that I would say Court was safe? I looked out the window. It was daytime (for me) outside, which meant it was still "night" for everyone else.

Someone knocked on my door, and I let out a screech, stumbling away towards the bed _They've come for me! _I looked around, trying to calculate my chance of escape.

"Sage? It's me!" Adrian called through the door.

My knees weak with relief, I ran to the door and opened it.

Adrian was standing there in just his undershirt and boxers, his face lined with concern. "Are you alright? I heard you screaming from next door!"

Without responding, I pulled him close to me, and buried my face into his chest, inhaling his sweet scent. Adrian patted my back until I gained control of myself and stepped back.

I motioned him in and shut the door behind him. I sank to the floor. "I just…had a really bad nightmare," I said weakly.

"I'll say," Adrian murmured, wrapping his arms around me. I closed my eyes, just letting him hold me. His being here with me chased away most of my fears. "Do you want to talk about it?"

At first, I wanted to say no, but as I looked into his eyes, I felt that I wanted to tell someone. No one knew about these nightmares. They had become less frequent after my assignment in Palm Springs, but they still came up once in awhile. This had been the worst nightmare I'd ever had.

And I trusted Adrian. Since he knew about dreams, maybe he could work out a cure.

I took a deep breath, and described everything in my dream. From the beginning, when I had been with him, to the end, when I had been electroshocked numerous times.

Adrian's face went pale when I finished. "Do they really electroshock people at Re-education Centers?" he asked softly.

I shook my head. "I don't know. No one really knows what happens to people at Re-education." Even after seeing Keith, I didn't know what happened to Alchemists who underwent Re-education. "But I saw someone who returned. He seemed like half a person after that. I don't know what they could've done to him to make him that way." I shivered at the memory. I didn't want to ever go there, and have my entire personality and mind taken away. _Who would I be then?_

Adrian leaned his head onto my shoulder. "I won't ever let that happen to you," he whispered fiercely. "I'll protect you. I won't let you be sent to re-education center. Ever."

I smiled wanly at him and kissed his cheek.

"Do you want me to stay with you?" he asked. "Or do you want me to go back?"

"I don't want you to leave yet," I whispered. I felt like I was a little girl again, scared of monsters lurking in her closet or under the bed.

"Shh," Adrian murmured, kissing my lips. "I'll stay with you as long as you want me here."

We got into my bed, and Adrian gently stroked my hair. "Sleep, lily girl. I'll be here when you wake up." I leaned my head into his shoulder, and his sweet scent wrapped around me as I drifted to sleep.

* * *

The next day was Sonya's wedding.

We gathered at a greenhouse that was roughly ten miles away from Court. Several guardians, including Rose and Dimitri, were attending in order to protect the Moroi, but Rose and Dimitri sat among the audience.

Eddie still hadn't been restored as a guardian, and Angeline wasn't actually a guardian, but they were still recruited to serve as protection. The anxiety in Eddie's eyes showed how worried he was to be away from Jill, but he didn't have a choice. If he made a fuss, people would inquire into Jill's identity.

I was seated in the front row with Rose, Dimitri, and Adrian. I didn't know most of the other guests in attendance, whom at a glance, were all Moroi and dhampirs. I'd heard from Rose that the queen might attend in disguise, but hadn't heard any more about it.

Jill was serving as one of Sonya's bridesmaids, and I knew that Emily Mastrano, Sonya's cousin, was also Sonya's maid of honor.

Adrian looked extraordinarily handsome in his white dress shirt, slacks, and tie. If it was even possible for him to look even better than he already did, this was it.

When I'd dressed in my lavender dress and heels and exited my room, Adrian's face had lit up when he saw me. "You look gorgeous, Sage," he whispered, taking my hand and kissing it.

I blushed, and wondered if it showed on my spirit disguise. I still wondered how he could look at me, and see me as the most gorgeous girl in the world. I was sure there were plenty of Moroi women much more beautiful than I would ever be, but the look in Adrian's eyes told me that I was the only beautiful girl he saw.

I looked around the greenhouse. The walls and ceiling were a slightly tinted glass, but I could see the snow that lay on the ground and trees. The sun glowed warmly in the sky, which made the snow shine brightly. It was "nighttime" for the Moroi, but Sonya had chosen to hold the wedding at a time when it was day for me.

Inside the greenhouse, fold-up chairs had been brought in to seat the 50 guests in attendance. A golden carpet marked the path that the bride and groom would walk in on. There was a Moroi minister standing in front of the room, recognizable by his robes and the gold cross he wore around his neck. A piano stood across the aisle from where the minister stood, and a Moroi woman was seated there.

The flowers around us were in full bloom, and gorgeous. A lot of them weren't in season, such as carnations, sunflowers, and chrysanthemums. The summer flowers really brightened up the greenhouse and added color that contrasted with the snow outside.

The opening strains of "Pachelbel's Canon" started, and a hush went over the whole crowd. Mikhail Tanner appeared at the doorway, and walked slowly down the aisle in time to the music.

The bridesmaids came after him, and I counted four bridesmaids. One of whom included Jill.

She looked amazing, with her red – from the spirit disguise – hair pinned up in a simple updo that left half of her hair trailing down around her shoulders. She was dressed in a simple strapless pink dress that really brought out her pale features, and carried a bouquet of roses that matched her dress perfectly. Her lips had been outlined in pink lipstick. She walked confidently yet gracefully down the aisle and stopped so that she was on one side of the aisle.

Then the piano player started playing "Here Comes the Bride," and everyone turned to the doors to look. I clutched Adrian's hand, and gasped when I saw Sonya.

Her auburn hair had been left to flow past her shoulders, and it looked like fire, which was visible even through the veil over her face. I was struck by how beautiful her wedding dress was. It was a strapless white dress, with the skirts falling in layers towards the ground like a waterfall. The bodice of the dress was embellished with crystals that sparkled brightly, and the pattern went down to around the waist of the dress.

_She looks so beautiful_, I thought as I watched her walk down the aisle, her head held high. I wondered if I would ever get married, and if I did, if I would ever look that beautiful. I banished the sentimental thoughts from my mind, and turned my attention back to Sonya.

She'd now reached Mikhail, and he took hold of her hands. He led her to the priest, and they knelt before him.

I was curious about how Moroi weddings were, but they seemed the same as any human one. The priest talked about how a couple would be united forever in the eyes of God, and about love and marriage in general. However, there was a part that involved blood, which made me a tad queasy.

Adrian had explained to me after he'd picked me up this morning, that marriages between Moroi involved blood. "It's not a lot of blood," he'd said as we got into the car. "It's just a traditional thing. From way back in God knows where, when blood was regarded as a sacred thing. It's tradition, for the Moroi who are being married to share their blood."

"Don't tell me they drink from each other," I said nervously.

Adrian laughed softly. "Don't be so morbid, Sa – I mean, Diana." Diana was my assumed name as a dhampir. "They just cut open their palms a little, and mingle the blood. Nothing bad, I promise."

I was drawn back to the present as the priest produced a silver knife. I felt nervous looking at the knife, gleaming in the weak sunlight shining through the glass, but hid my unease. _It's a Moroi tradition, and there's nothing to be scared of_, I reiterated to myself.

Mikhail drew the knife across his hand and then passed the knife to Sonya, who did the same. They pressed their hands together, letting their blood mingle as they looked into each other's eyes. They let go of their hands, which were now cut-free, and then it was time for the reading of the vows.

"I, Mikhail Tanner, take you , Sonya Karp, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part," Mikhail said, looking at Sonya with a look of affection and love.

"I, Sonya Karp, take you, Mikhail Tanner, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part," Sonya said, sounding like she was going to cry from happiness.

They then exchanged rings, and I noted that the rings were both simple silver rings. Nothing particularly fancy or ornate.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife," the priest said, stepping back. "You may now kiss the bride."

Mikhail lifted the veil from Sonya's face. Her blue eyes shimmered with happy tears as she looked up at him, and then he leaned in and kissed her.

It didn't look like a hot, passionate kiss, but just by looking at them, I could see the tenderness and love it conveyed. The kiss lasted very long, and soon there were whoops from the audience as photos were snapped.

They finally broke apart, with smiles on their faces. Everyone stood up, and applauded them before we all exited out the door.

Sonya and Mikhail came out a few minutes later, hand in hand, looking like they had had the happiest day of their life. _This probably _is_ the happiest day for them_, I reflected to myself.

* * *

**Author's note**: I wanted to post a picture of the dress I'd based Sonya's wedding dress on, but FanFic won't let me post the link D: So if anyone wants to see the picture, just message me, or ask in the reviews. Did I mention...you should review this? ;D


	10. Marcus Finch

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 10 Marcus Finch

Our last few days after Sonya's wedding at Court passed quietly. It snowed quite a bit, but Adrian and the others still showed me around Court. One of the biggest surprises (courtesy of Rose) was a secret, exclusive spa. Rose had insisted on making me go, but I refused, even though I had my dhampir disguise.

One of the best things that happened was a snowball fight. I'd lived in Utah, where there was plenty of snow, but no time for any snow fun. No snowmen, no snowball fights, no catching snowflakes.

It all started when I was quietly walking across Court, near the grand church. Something cold and wet hit the side of my head, and I yelped. Snow is cold, even when you're bundled up in two layers of jackets, a hat, gloves, and snow boots.

When I spun around, I saw Adrian step out from a bush three feet away with a wicked grin on his face. Jill was laughing uncontrollably at his side. "What'd you do that for?" I demanded.

"You should lighten up a little, Sage," he said cheerily, leaning down and packing another snowball. "Have a snowball fight."

There was no way I was going to get hit by a snowball again. I leaned down, quickly packed a snowball of my own, and hurled it at Adrian.

He ducked, with his amazing Moroi reflexes, but it still got the side of his face. "Hey! I didn't hit your face."

"You hit the side of my _head_ so that counts," I retorted, unable to help a smile.

With that, it escalated into a full-out snowball fight. Eddie and Angeline teamed up against me, Adrian, and Jill. I dodged most of the snowballs they threw at me and returned snowballs at them. Adrian kept shouting silly insults at them, and Jill's aim wasn't too bad. We had to stop when some passing Moroi gave us some very weird looks and go in to where it was warm.

* * *

The last day before we left was Christmas, and the whole gang from Palm Springs exchanged presents in the room outside the throne room. The room we'd gathered in was huge, with big windows and decorated festively in Christmas decorations. I amazingly had had time to go out and go shopping.

In my childhood, we had rarely celebrated Christmas except by going to church. There had been almost no such things as Christmas presents, or even birthday ones. The only Christmas presents that had ever meant anything were from my mom or my sisters, but my father often prevented us from celebrating Christmas.

"Christmas is just one of those holidays thought up to attract buyers and business," I remember him saying dismissively once, when I was around eight or nine. "There's no real meaning."

My mom had protested, of course. Her personality was so different from my father's, I wondered what had even drawn them to each other. "Jared, it's supposed to be a happy time of year! This is once a year, just like birthdays."

"_Happy_? We can be happy other days of the year," my father had retorted. "It doesn't have to be a specific time dictated by the masses. We aren't celebrating Christmas."

Eventually, he'd relented a little. But it wasn't a whole lot, and by the time he did, I was around fourteen. I'd missed out on Christmas as a child, and it made me wonder what other things I'd missed out on that most kids took for granted.

I watched Adrian anxiously as he unwrapped my present. It had taken me a great deal of thinking to think of what he might want for Christmas, and a lot of searching. I'd had to drive to the nearest town from Court (about ten miles away) just to find it.

His face lit up when he finished tearing through the paper. "You got me art supplies, Sage?"

"Well, I was thinking even though you can buy your own things, you might like some more oils and watercolors-" I began, starting to panic mentally even though his face was full of happiness. _Did I get the wrong type of present? Should I have_ -

My thoughts were cut off when he hugged me tight, holding the oil and watercolor paints that I had bought for him. "Thank you," he murmured, burying his face affectionately against my shoulder before pulling away. I felt a little light-headed after the hug, and was barely aware of Angeline and Eddie staring at us.

He handed me a small wrapped present. I eyed the paper suspiciously. It looked very haphazard and messy, like someone had wrapped the present in the dark. "Why did you wrap the present so messily?" I asked.

Adrian frowned at me. "It's artistic integrity, Sage. Everyone else wraps their presents all neatly, but I thought I'd do something unique for a change."

I unwrapped the box, and a blue jewelry box was revealed. My heart beating unbearably fast, I opened it.

Inside lay a silver charm bracelet. When I lifted it up, there were several charms attached to it – a small lily (that almost resembled my tattoo, on close examination), a tiny mask, a tiny ice cream cone, and a paintbrush.

I looked up at Adrian, feeling very happy. "When did you have time to get this?"

"I brought the bracelet here," he admitted, "but I drove out to town so I could look around for a shop that sold charms. Finding a shop like that in just three days isn't easy, Sage. I picked that ice cream to represent Florence, since I couldn't actually find a bridge or anything."

The memory of the day when Adrian confessed his feelings to me flashed through my mind. He'd offered me pomegranate gelato that day, since he had gone a week without alcohol or cigarettes.

"Thank you, Adrian," I whispered.

He kissed my cheek, making sure to keep it light since we were still with company, and fastened the bracelet around my left wrist. I looked down and admired the charms twinkling up at me.

I received some perfume from Jill, jeans from Angeline (she had finally learned that making her own things wasn't necessarily a good thing), and some stationery from Eddie.

I didn't keep track of everything the others received, but Angeline received a beautiful blue bracelet from Eddie that matched her blue eyes perfectly. She squealed and hugged him tight, and pretty soon they were kissing.

I was shocked. It wasn't like I didn't kiss Adrian, but to be so affectionate out in public? Plenty of teens did that, but I thought it was very coarse and unclassy to do so.

On instinct, I looked at Jill. Her green eyes were welling with tears, and she looked down at the floor to hold them back.

My heart went out to her. Again, I wished I knew how to comfort her, but I had absolutely no experience in cheering someone up when they were pining after someone they loved.

Adrian stepped over to her, and tilted her face so they were facing each other. From the silence that held out between them, he must've been talking to her through the bond. Finally, she nodded and blinked her eyes rapidly before putting on a chipper expression.

I wondered what he'd said to her, but withheld my questions.

"You guys, stop making a public disturbance and warping everyone's minds," Adrian said. It was a typical, witty Adrian-style remark and I couldn't help but laugh.

Eddie and Angeline pulled away from each other so fast I wondered if they got whiplash. "No one's passing by," Angeline pointed out defensively, her Southern drawl becoming more pronounced.

"Well, there were some people like a minute ago, and they were looking at you like you're putting on a show," Adrian said.

"It isn't a show," Angeline protested but I was relieved to see that they didn't go back to making out right in front of us.

"Angel, we should probably stop that," Eddie said, softening his voice as he spoke to her. I felt like my jaw was going to drop to the floor. _Since when did he call her_ Angel_?_

* * *

We had to fly back to Palm Springs the next day. I was kind of sad to go. Being at Court, where it was "safe" for vampires meant I'd been able to actually relax a little and have fun.

When we arrived in LAX, Eddie offered to drive. "Everyone else looks pretty tired," he said, looking around at us as we entered the parking garage.

I would've driven, especially since it was Latte, but I felt really tired. The flight hadn't even been that long. Now it was California afternoon, but really night in Pennsylvania. Despite all the travels I'd had to do because of my Alchemist work, I felt dead tired.

"Go ahead," I yawned, handing Eddie the keys. He looked as alert and on guard as he usually did.

He motioned Jill to get into the front seat, and Angeline sat in the back with me and Adrian. I closed my eyes.

"Just sleep," Adrian murmured in my ear, keeping his voice soft. He felt so close to me, and unable to resist, I leaned my head onto his shoulder. I felt him put his arm around me before I drifted off into sleep.

The next morning, I received a call from Clarence.

"I got in touch with Marcus Finch about three days ago," he said.

I shot up in my bed at his words. Those words fueled me more than a triple latte could. "You did? Where is he?" _How had he been able to get in touch with Marcus Finch so easily?_ I wondered.

"He wouldn't say anything, but he did say he's willing to come to Palm Springs."

"How soon?" I demanded. The sooner I met Marcus Finch, the sooner I would receive answers to my questions.

"Oh, soon. I'm sure he mentioned the date, but it really did slip my mind a little."

I tried to hold on to my patience. Clarence wasn't always quite there after his son Lee had been killed. We'd at first thought he had been somewhat delusional when he had talked about vampire hunters, but after the encounter with the Warriors of Light, it was clear he hadn't completely lost his mind. "Sir, just try to go back a little. When do you believe is the date he mentioned?"

"Oh…perhaps tomorrow or in the next two days," Clarence said vaguely.

"What did you say to him about me?" I asked. I wondered if Marcus Finch would really come to meet me. If he was hiding from the Alchemists, he surely wouldn't be too fond on meeting me.

"Oh, not much. Just that a young lady wanted to meet him."

"Did you mention anything about how I'm an Alchemist?" I asked.

"Oh, dear. It's slipped my mind," Clarence said, sounding apologetic. "I'll let you know when he contacts me again."

With that, our call ended.

I set my phone down and lay down on my bed, my head spinning with even more questions. Just how close was the relationship between Clarence and Marcus Finch, if Clarence could get Marcus to come to where he lived? How had Marcus Finch been able to hide from the Alchemists for however long he'd left?

And the most important question of all. _Why_ did Marcus Finch choose to leave the Alchemists?

* * *

The next two days passed very quietly, but I was impatient to meet the mysterious Marcus Finch.

Clarence contacted me in the morning of the second day, and said that Marcus Finch was willing to meet me at Spencer's that night, at around six. Since curfew wasn't until eleven, I agreed to it.

I drove Latte downtown to Spencer's. The parking lot was full, so I opted to park down the street about a block away.

When I got out, I instinctively felt like something wasn't right. It felt like someone was watching me, and their intentions weren't good.

I spun around. "Hello?" I yelled.

There was no one there, but that sense of being watched still lingered with me. _Just because no one was there didn't mean I'm not being watched_, I reminded myself. I decided to trust my instincts and get to Spencer's as fast as I could.

I remembered all of Wolfe's self-defense lessons, and looked down the street to Spencer's. The street was lit, although there weren't too many cars parked along it. There were very few pedestrians on this side of the street, but the other side of the street had plenty of pedestrians. I could put up some type of a fight, but I didn't want to engage in combat unless it was absolutely necessary. I also got the feeling I wouldn't be able to win.

I walked briskly down the street, trying to appear calm and alert. Still, my senses were working over time. For the first time, I wished that I had the senses of a Moroi. I couldn't hear subtle things Moroi or dhampirs would've been able to pick up on.

When I was halfway to Spencer's, I heard footsteps echoing softly behind me. I whipped my head around, and caught a glimpse of a figure scurrying into the bushes. I noted that the figure had been pretty tall and big, even in the dim lighting, and deduced that it was probably a man.

My unease grew. _Why would a man be following me?_ I didn't have that much cash on me, and I doubted I was going to be kidnapped.

Kidnapped…

The word echoed through my mind. That was the most likely reason why that figure was tailing me. _But why? _I didn't have time to wonder why, and I certainly didn't intend on standing around and letting someone grab me.

I continued walking, and slowed down when I saw a crosswalk coming up ahead that would lead to Spencer's. It was red. I'd have to stand and wait for two minutes. Would I be kidnapped or harmed if I stopped walking?

Suddenly someone materialized out of the dark, and I opened my mouth to scream.

"Shh!" he said, looking over at me.

"Are you trying to kidnap me?" I demanded. It didn't look like the same man who I'd caught a brief glimpse of, but I wasn't sure. What if they were in cohorts?

"I'm not going to kidnap you," the man said. He sounded pretty young, in his early to mid twenties. "But I saw the man trailing you. We need to get to Spencer's, where it's safe."

I wondered how he knew I was planning to go there, but didn't make any remark. "The crosswalk's red."

"Now it's not," the man said, nudging me. "Go!"

I sprinted across the street as fast as I could, feeling someone behind me. When I arrived at the other side of the street, I was out of breath.

I turned to look at the man who had told me to get to Spencer's. The streetlights glowed brightly, revealing his features.

He was tall and lean, with a blond hair color that rivaled my own that was closely cropped. His eyes were a deep striking blue, and it seemed to me that there was a deep sadness in them, like he'd lived a hard life.

He turned his head, and the light fell on something on his left cheek. An abstract design of crescents of various sizes and orientations. The crescents were so close together it looked like a vine. The rich indigo ink rivaled the color of his eyes.

I gasped. I'd seen this face before, in a photograph Clarence had given to me through Sonya. He looked quite older than he had in the photograph, and yet…

"It can't be. You're…you're…"

"Yes. I'm Marcus Finch."

* * *

**Author's note**: Phew! Finally managed to write another chapter (while procrastinating...ARGH) after quite a while. I really miss writing. Hope you enjoy :) Ideas/reviews are always welcome!


	11. The Ex-Alchemist

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 11 The Ex-Alchemist

I was soon seated across from Marcus Finch in Spencer's, with a vanilla latte sitting in front of me. I took a sip, wondering how I was supposed to even start with all the numerous questions floating around in my head.

A wry smile touched Marcus's face. "You must have a million questions for me, Sydney."

"How do you even know my name?" I demanded. _How could he already know that when I hardly know anything about him?_

"Clarence mentioned you when he asked me to come to Palm Springs," he said, taking a sip of his mocha. "A girl with a lily tattoo by the name of Sydney Sage."

"If you ran away from the Alchemists, then why did you come when you heard about me?" I asked warily. It seemed to me that if he had escaped the Alchemists, he wouldn't be too eager to run off towards Alchemists.

Marcus shrugged. "I had my reasons." There was a guarded look in his eyes.

I eyed him carefully. He seemed to be carrying lots of secrets – secrets I wasn't sure I wanted to know about. "Why did you come?" I repeated. "I don't think you'd be too keen on meeting Alchemists."

He shrugged. "True, but I just had the feeling you wouldn't turn me in to your superiors. You have too many questions for me. Especially concerning why I left the Alchemists."

"You can't just turn your back on the Alchemists," I said, although I longed to be able to break free deep down. "We're supposed to protect the rest of our kind-"

Marcus held up his free hand, a disgusted look in his blue eyes. "Spare me the Alchemist holier-than-thou crap. I've had enough of it. They must've brainwashed you too."

"_Brainwashed_?" I demanded as anger swept through me. "It's not brainwashing!"

"If you don't call them forcing you to believe what they believe and you blinding acceding to their beliefs brainwashing, then be my guest," Marcus said dryly.

But he was right. The Alchemists _did_ brainwash us. We were forced to believe that all vampires, even the Moroi and dhampirs, were evil creatures of the night. None of the Alchemists had any reason to believe anything else since they rarely came in close contact with vampires, like I did now. I wondered what my superiors would think of me now if they knew how friendly I'd gotten with vampires and how I was doing things that were non-Alchemist business related. _They'd call me a vamp-lover_, I thought bitterly.

Marcus was watching me wrestle with my inner conflicts, and he nodded. "Yes. You realize that now."

I decided to make no comment. I wasn't about to add more fuel to the fire. "How did you even stay hidden from the Alchemists?" I asked, deciding on a question that didn't seem too personal and loaded. "I didn't even know it was possible for anyone to hide from them."

Marcus pointed at his cheek. "This hides me."

I looked more closely at the indigo tattoo on his cheek, and saw a faint flash of gold underneath. The Alchemist lily could never be removed, which was probably why he'd gone to so much trouble to hide it. "You're saying that tattoo hides you from Alchemists?" I asked doubtfully.

Marcus paused. "It's a concealment spell. I needed to hide my lily tattoo so I just had this tattooed over."

I frowned. Magic. _Does this mean he can practice magic?_ "A concealment spell?"

He hesitated, and looked around. "I'll tell you more about it when we're somewhere not in public. But all I can say right now is that I know about magic. I can use some magic, but only very minor magic and some convenient spells. I can use this spell to hide from the Alchemists."

I wondered just how much "some" magic was, but then I'd have to reveal I could use magic myself. That wasn't exactly something you went around blurting out to strangers. I decided to save some of my questions for later. "So you're trying to say that you've been using that spell to hide from the Alchemists since…"

"For the past four years," Marcus said with a shrug.

_Four years is a long time to hide from the Alchemists_, I thought. _And I doubted the Alchemists would easily let go anyone who had left. They must've been searching very hard for him while concealing his existence from everyone else_.

"Why did you leave the Alchemists?" I asked. "And don't say you're not going to tell me. I don't know if I can trust you completely."

Marcus eyed me with a speculative look in his eyes. "I have the feeling you're not letting go until you get some answers. I suppose I at least owe you a few answers.

"As for why I left….I can't give you the entire story. I was being shipped off…to a Re-education Center for a reason. A 'good reason,' in the eyes of the Alchemists. When I got there…that place…" His voice was bleak, and his eyes were haunted by some unseen, dark memory. "I won't give you a description. It would scare you to death. I will say this much. They give you something to dream about your worst nightmares."

"What's that?" I asked, feeling scared. I hardly knew him, and yet, I got the feeling he was a pretty brave man. If he was refusing to tell me what the re-education center was like, I could only dimly imagine how it was truly like. My nightmare at Court flashed back through my mind, and I shivered.

"I didn't find this out until much later, long after I'd left," Marcus continued, his voice even. "They feed you pills. Sleeping pills that are embedded with a small amount of silver, but no one knows about that."

"Why silver?" I asked, feeling even colder than before. As far as I knew, no one could eat silver. _Why would anyone put silver in pills?_

"You know how silver can hold Moroi magic, right?" Marcus asked after a quick look around.

I nodded, and a sickening feeling twisted in my stomach. I had a feeling I knew where this was going, and it was not good. "Yes. That's why guardians use silver stakes – charmed with the four elements so that they can kill Strigoi. Silver holds magic." Of course, there was the fifth element spirit, but if Marcus didn't know, I didn't intend on filling him in about it.

"There's a fifth, psychic element," Marcus said, looking away, out at the windows. "It's called spirit. I don't understand much about it, but I understand it's tied into psychic powers." Adrian's face flashed through my mind, but I tried to focus on the present. "The Alchemists have some spirit users under their control at several of the re-education centers. They charm the silver pieces that go into the pills, specifically with compulsion."

Compulsion. It was the ability to make anyone see, do, or think what the person wanted. All Moroi could use it to a certain degree, but most Moroi couldn't use a lot. Spirit users – and Strigoi, from what I'd heard – could use incredible amounts of compulsion and get people to do what they wanted.

"Why compulsion?" I asked, trying to control my voice from shaking. I wasn't exactly scared of compulsion itself now – I was scared of the purpose it was being used for.

Marcus met my eyes, and that dead, haunted look was back in his own eyes. "To create a person's worst nightmare and inflict the worst pain they've ever felt in their life."

My eyes went wide, and horror swept through me. "The Alchemists…inflict pain and torture on those put in Re-education Centers?"

Marcus nodded, his expression and tone grave. "They also use traditional forms of torture, such as electroshock. No one knows what goes on at a Re-education Center. Those who have undergone such horrors are compelled to never speak of what happened to them."

I shuddered. This would explain the one Alchemist I'd met that had seemed half-dead after he'd returned from Re-education. And Keith…when I'd seen him last time, he'd been screaming, "Please! I'm serious. Whatever you want. I'll do anything. I'll say anything. I'll believe anything. Just please don't send me back there!" Now with the knowledge of what went on behind the walls of the Re-education Centers, I understood.

Anger swept through me. "That's just sick!" I shouted. A few patrons looked over at me in alarm, and I checked myself. "If we're supposed to be keeping our fellow humans 'safe' from vampires, using vampire compulsion negates that purpose."

"It is," Marcus agreed, "but don't forget, most Alchemists don't know what's in the pill. They only know that it brings horrible nightmares and terrible pain. I imagine only the top Alchemists know what's in the pills."

"And how can the pills be charmed to give people their worst nightmares?" I asked, feeling scared. "Everyone is different, and don't dream the same nightmares."

"Spirit is the key thing that creates those nightmares. It taps into your mind, and pulls out the worst nightmares, the things that you fear more than anything else in the world," Marcus explained.

My early fear of spirit…is that where it came from? The fear of horrible nightmares? I'd had no knowledge of the role spirit played in Re-education Centers. On a subconscious level, had I known that spirit could be used for horrible things? I shivered again.

"It's _disgusting_," I said. "How did you even receive that knowledge about spirit, the pills, and the Re-education Centers?"

"After I left the Alchemists, I eventually ran into a few Moroi that had used to… 'work' at those Re-education Centers," Marcus said. I could practically hear the quotes around the word "work," but had no opportunity to ask further. "They explained a little about spirit, and what they'd had to do while they were at the Re-education Centers."

"So much for staying away from those 'evil creatures of the night' if my superiors are secretly in conjunction with them to torture Alchemists," I said bitterly after drinking part of my latte.

"Believe me, the Moroi aren't doing it of their own free will," Marcus said flatly. "And another thing you should know. Most Alchemists are eventually released after their time, but they're never the same again. There are some that are permanently stuck at those centers. I was the only one to ever successfully escape from a Re-education Center."

My eyes widened. "You _escaped_ from a Re-education Center?" My respect for him increased. This man had _escaped_ a Re-education Center and successfully evaded the Alchemists for four years. I was pretty sure those were nearly impossible feats.

Marcus nodded. "But it wasn't easy to orchestrate my flight. I needed a lot of help. In the end, I managed to get out, but of course, I'll never be completely free from the Alchemists."

"Why?" I asked.

Marcus tapped the indigo tattoo on his cheek that obscured his lily. "You know how once you enter the Alchemists, you can never, ever leave, correct?"

_If only you knew how many times I've told that to Adrian_, I thought, but I nodded. "It's a way of life, protecting humans from discovering the existence of vampires."

"The Alchemists will _never_ let me go if they found me. For me to turn my back on them, even for genuinely good reasons, makes me a traitor in their eyes. If I was to be caught, I would be sent to the harshest Re-education Center in existence for the rest of my life…or I would be killed."

I gasped. _Killed?_

He nodded. "You belong to the Alchemists for the rest of your life. If you don't believe every bit of propaganda they shove down your throat, you're a traitor to them and to the whole of humankind. This is why I have to take such precautions to hide from them. I could never be one of the Alchemists again, and I never want to be sent to a Re-education Center again…or killed."

_Would I be hunted down and killed if I was to ever leave the Alchemists?_

Then something occurred to me, and I frowned. "If you can hide with your tattoo, how is it that I can see you?" I couldn't help but wonder how exactly his tattoo worked, and how it concealed him. I'd never been able to use invisibility or concealment spells, and was a teeny bit jealous he could work more magic than me, if there was magic in that tattoo.

He put his head on his chin, studying me. "Do you know about or practice magic, by any chance?"

_Oh no. Just great_. Adrian knew that I could practice magic, but he was the only one who knew. Now I was supposed to blurt out this carefully kept secret to a complete _stranger_?

_He had brought up magic in the first place, so obviously he won't think you're crazy if you bring that up_, I assured myself. Still, it was a big step. I sat up straight and nodded. "I know about, and I practice magic."

Marcus's blue eyes went wide. "An Alchemist who practices magic…that's…unheard of," he breathed.

I shrugged, feeling uncomfortable. "My teacher says that I have a natural affinity for magic."

He learned towards me. "This concealment spell is very powerful. Very few people can see through this. For an Alchemist who practices magic to be able to see through it…you are very gifted with magic, and it must be a legacy that runs in your blood."

"You're kidding," I snapped. "It doesn't run in my blood!"

I flashed back to when Sonya and Dimitri had still been in Palm Springs. She'd told me that researchers had felt a hum of magic in my blood and that there must've been something about that combination that kept Strigoi from drinking my blood. I'd said it was from my lily tattoo, which was probably partly true.

But was there some type of magic that wasn't from my lily tattoo that ran in my blood too?

* * *

**Author's note**: I think it was kind of lot to put into Sydney's first meeting/conversation with Marcus, but what do you guys think? And any ideas you'd like to see for more of why Marcus chose to leave the Alchemists? Drop some reviews/ideas! :)


	12. The Indigo Spell

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 12 The Indigo Spell

"It runs in your blood," Marcus insisted, his blue eyes flashing. "I don't practice or know a lot about magic, but I can sense you're very gifted. Magic isn't just a gift. For it to be so strong in you, an Alchemist, it must run in your family."

"It doesn't run in my family," I retorted. "As if my father would be associated with anything magic-related. And I doubt my mom's side of the family would be magic users." _Or were they?_ I wondered.

I'd only met my mom's part of the family a few times. My father didn't like us associating with them. I made a mental note to check with my mom soon, if I could ever go back to Utah. I wish I could go home briefly.

Marcus frowned. "Your father's Jared Sage, right?"

Just my father's name made my stomach turn. _Nothing_ I ever did was enough to meet his standards. He had very high expectations of me, and I could never meet those expectations.

I swallowed back my angry words and said coolly, "Yes, he's my father."

He studied me for a moment, not saying anything. I felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze but drank my latte. At last, he said, "I knew your father."

I sputtered and nearly spat out my latte (which would've been a waste of perfectly good coffee). "What?" I asked, feeling like my eyes were bugging out of my head.

My father had _known_ the man who had turned his back on the Alchemists? That was impossible! I couldn't imagine my father associating with anyone who would eventually be a "traitor" to the Alchemists.

Marcus's mouth turned up in a wry grin. "Before I left, I was a very good Alchemist. I was one of your father's protégés."

I stared. He didn't seem like a "very good Alchemist," considering how he'd decided to leave. But I supposed people changed all the time. "You knew my father?"

"He took over my training once my father…was sent away," he said.

I wondered why his father had been sent away, and I guessed that he'd been an Alchemist as well. "I never met you or heard of you though," I said with a frown.

"Your father trained Keith Darnell before he was sent to Re-education, right?" Marcus asked.

I wondered how he knew that, but I supposed an Alchemist, even an ex one, made everything his business. I nodded, and bitter memories resurged. "Yes, I remember."

"Well, sometimes he would take me along on 'field trips' or teach me things the average Alchemist wasn't always taught.

Marcus looked at his wrist. "I'm guessing you should probably return home. It's a little late."

I looked up at the clock across the room and gasped. "I really have to hurry. My curfew's in twenty minutes."

Marcus raised an eyebrow at me. "You go to school?"

I glared at him, slightly offended by his patronizing tone. "And I'm the local Alchemist. I'd advise that you watch your tone."

He paid for our coffees, and walked me from Spencer's to Latte. After the earlier incident, I didn't want to take any more chances of walking alone on dark streets. He promised to be in touch with me soon and left.

* * *

After driving back to Amberwood, I recalled the tattoo on Marcus's face that apparently shielded him from Alchemists but not me. I decided I wanted to talk to Ms. Terwilliger, and prayed that she was still in school instead of her house.

Much to my surprise, Ms. Terwilliger was still in her classroom, sorting through what appeared to be tests from a recent test I'd taken before winter break. There were about five more days or so before school would continue. She looked up and peered at me. "Ms. Melbourne, what a surprise. I thought you were still on 'vacation.'"

I ignored her leading tone, wondering if she'd used a scrying spell to spy on me. "Well, I'm back, and I wanted to ask a question."

"Ask away, Ms. Melbourne."

"Is there some type of spell that can be contained in a tattoo and hide the wearer from specific people?" I asked.

Her eyes flashed behind her glasses with….fear? _It couldn't be_, I told myself. Yet the look in her eyes reminded me of the night I'd been pulled out of bed to cast a scrying spell.

"Sydney, who have you talked to?" she asked in a very serious voice that was very unlike my scatterbrained teacher.

"Does it matter?" I asked, startled by her tone.

"Yes. Who told you about that?"

"Marcus Finch."

Ms. Terwilliger let out an exhale and placed her stack of papers on her desk. "I should've known that it would be him. He would eventually come back, even though he's taking quite a risk."

I regarded her with confusion. "What?"

Ms. Terwilliger pointed at the door and it closed. She chanted something in Latin – roughly translated, a spell that would protect people within a certain area from being overheard – and a silver glow surrounded the entire classroom.

I shivered. Despite my recent use in magic, I was still a little uncomfortable with it. I could only dimly imagine how magic would look like if it was used in battle.

"You know of Marcus Finch's history, right?" she asked me.

"He only said he was being sent to a Re-education Center, and that he escaped. He told me about what they do there, but not specifically about why he was sent to Re-education to begin with," I explained.

Ms. Terwilliger paused for a moment, her eyes distant. "Very well then. I can't go more into detail, as that is his story to tell."

"You know why he left the Alchemists?" I asked, gasping.

She nodded. "But I can't tell you. I'm sorry. This is his story, and his alone. It's not my place to tell you it."

I wondered how the two knew each other, and how Ms. Terwilliger seemed to know about the indigo tattoo on Marcus's cheek.

"Not long after Marcus escaped from Re-education, he came to me. We'd actually been in touch for a few years before. I taught at a high school he attended as part of an undercover assignment to protect a Moroi girl."

_Sort of like what I'm doing now_, I realized with a start.

"I don't know the circumstances surrounding Marcus's assignment, but from what I understand, they befriended each other although they were human and Moroi. Anyway, he came to me for help. He wanted me to disguise him – at least temporarily – so that he could hide from the Alchemists for the rest of his life. I agreed to shelter him for awhile until I found a spell that would effectively disguise him. While he was in hiding with me, I taught him a few practical spells. Although he showed some promise, he never learned more than just practical magic."

"How long did it even take you to find the Indigo Spell?" I blurted.

Ms. Terwilliger shrugged. "It was quite a while. The Indigo Spell was lost for centuries, and it was only through a great deal of searching that I managed to find it. It took another while longer to gather some of the ingredients. When I cast the spell…well, it was very draining for me." She pulled out a book from seemingly thin air – although that wasn't supposed to be physically possible – and handed it to me with the page already open.

On one page was a drawing of the tattoo on Marcus's cheek. The abstract design of crescents that were clustered so close that it looked like a vine, drawn with the same indigo ink. On the opposite page it read "The Indigo Spell," and listed the ingredients.

I noted several of the stones. Lapis lazuli, amethyst, malachite, and quartz. They weren't that hard to find, but they had to be blessed on specific days. There were also several herbs that weren't very easy to find either. The caster also had to use a moonstone and leave it under the sun and full moon for "two nights and two days."

I flipped the page to find the list of steps for the rest of the spell, but it was for a love spell. I looked up at Ms. Terwilliger, baffled. "There aren't any more instructions."

"It's for a reason," Ms. Terwilliger said, sounding fearful. "You remember that you scried for my sister, and you said she was in LA, right?"

I nodded, wondering where she was leading this.

"If Ravenna – my sister's name – found out about the Indigo Spell, we would all be doomed. She wants to recruit powerful, young witches and warlocks to her coven. When she gains enough magic users on her side…we will walk in darkness."

That wasn't exactly something I wanted to hear. As an Alchemist, I already was looking out to keep humanity safe from the immortal undead. Now there was an evil witch out there who wanted to recruit witches and warlocks? "What does Ravenna even want?" I asked.

Ms. Terwilliger bit her lip. She looked at me and whispered, "I don't know everything she wants to do, but I do know that she wants to ally herself with the Strigoi."

I stared. Humans working for the Strigoi in exchange for immortality were something I had encountered a few times. It happened much more than we cared to truly admit, but we knew it happened.

Witches and warlocks that wanted to conspire with the Strigoi…for some dark purpose. Did all magic users eventually come to know about vampires? I supposed it wasn't too much of a stretch, considering how my people had found out about vampires centuries ago when we had been trying to turn substances into gold.

"Why?" I asked, my voice shaking.

Ms. Terwilliger looked at me, her eyes deeply troubled. "So they can gain immortality."

"A Strigoi could just bite them and then…they'd become Strigoi and immortal," I said uneasily. Disgust washed over me as I recalled that horrible memory from months ago, when Lee had asked those two Strigoi to turn him back – "awaken" him, as he'd put it.

She shook her head. "That's not what I mean by immortality. Yes, the Strigoi are immortal. But what Ravenna wants to find is how to make a potion for immortality, so she could remain a human. She doesn't like cavorting with the Strigoi, but she will if she can be immortal. She doesn't want to give up her magic."

"Why is she seeking out young magic users, though?" I asked. "She can talk to the Strigoi on her own. And there isn't anything she could offer to the Strigoi."

Ms. Terwilliger bit her lip. "I don't understand much of her activities anymore. However, from what I understand….she recruits them to teach them better control of their magic, and then when she's strong enough, she'll take their magic all for herself."

_This_ was why she was so adamant that I learned about magic. She wanted me to protect myself from Ravenna. "But why would learning magic protect me?"

"You've been trained in the ways of light," she explained, restlessly rifling through a spellbook. "You know what's good and bad. The ones that she recruits don't know the difference, or they're power-hungry, or she convinces them."

My head was starting to spin. This was quite a divergent subject from when I'd first asked about Marcus's indigo tattoo. "Back to my earlier question. How does the Indigo Spell work, exactly?"

"The Indigo Spell is a concealment spell. It's keyed to hide someone from specific people, and I keyed it so that Marcus would remain hidden from the Alchemists. However, you were able to see through it despite being one because you can use magic. Even though the Indigo Spell is very effective, it must be 'recharged' every two months or it will reveal Marcus's identity. Just 'recharging' it is very draining for me, and I have practiced magic for many years."

"But is the tattoo absolutely necessary?" I asked.

Ms. Terwilliger nodded. "It binds the spell to the person, and therefore is absolutely necessary. The tattoo also concealed Marcus's previous tattoo." She tapped her cheek for emphasis.

I stood, and looked at the time. It was way past midnight.

"Go to sleep, Ms. Melbourne. I will continue to teach you magic, and soon, I'm afraid I will have to teach you a few concealment spells to hide you from Ravenna."

"But if she uses magic…" I trailed off.

"Yes, she works black magic that corrupts the soul," Ms. Terwilliger said. "But she hopefully won't be able to see through these spells since I added on to ancient spells."

* * *

I got ready for bed that night, exhausted from the meeting with Marcus Finch and my talk with Ms. Terwilliger. _The ex-Alchemist who escaped from my people…Re-education Centers….The Indigo Spell…Ravenna…dark magic…_ It was no wonder I couldn't sleep at all. There were too many things to think about.

I wished that I could talk to Adrian. I hadn't actually spoken with him, even in dreams, since we'd arrived back in Palm Springs a few days ago. I deeply missed his sarcasm and witty comments more than I really wanted to admit.

I wondered what he would think of my extensive use of magic and of a dark sorceress looking for me to recruit into her coven. Adrian was the only one who knew about me using magic. He actually didn't condemn me for it, but was amazed I could use it. I wished I could confide in him, but I didn't feel like I wanted to.

I stared at my phone and wondered if I should call him. Or maybe I'd see him in my dreams and I could tell him about it.

_No, don't tell him_, I told myself as I climbed into my bed. _He'll just worry about you. I can handle this alone. _

I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**Author's note**: Finally got a chapter up again! For some reason, this story is a lot easier to write than _Love that Lasts Forever_. I feel like I'm starting to run out of ideas again (curse you, writer's block) so ideas/reviews will be VERY greatly appreciated! Happy reading~


	13. A Party to be Remembered

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 13 A Party to be Remembered

When I opened my eyes again the next morning, I was deeply disappointed that Adrian hadn't dream walked with me.

_Why hasn't he talked to me in so long?_ I wondered unhappily, staring blankly at a crack in the ceiling. Ever since I had allowed him to talk to me in dreams, we talked at least every other day. We didn't use the phone so that Alchemists wouldn't be able to track my movement, but this was highly unusual.

_He's probably busy with his art classes at Carlton_, I tried to console myself as I got up and prepared for another day of winter break. His classes can be pretty busy, seeing as they started up again right after we returned from Court.

Somehow, my heart wasn't buying it. _Maybe he's realizing how uptight and boring you are_, part of me whispered. _You had a perfect chance when you were "alone" at Court to _be_ with him, and you only let him sleep in the same bed as you._

I stared at my phone, mentally willing him to call me. If I could make my enemies go blind and create fire, why couldn't I wish for Adrian to call me? But fifteen minutes passed, and my phone didn't ring.

I set aside my negative thoughts and the unsettling questions they presented and hurried downstairs to breakfast.

* * *

Much to my surprise, Adrian called me later that day. "We should go out and have some fun tomorrow," were his first words.

I pursed my lips, even though I knew perfectly well he couldn't see me. "Why?" I asked, hoping that my voice conveyed disapproval. He'd been doing so well in giving up his vices, and now he wanted to go back to alcohol? I knew he did it sometimes, to numb the effects of spirit, but I thought he'd been doing pretty well.

He sighed on the other end. "No, I'm not planning on drinking myself to where I'm wandering around shirtless reciting poetry. It's New Year's Eve tomorrow, and I think we should let loose a little and have fun."

"Didn't you have fun at Court?" I asked crossly, crossing my legs.

"Well yes, but you'll have even more fun tomorrow night, Sage," Adrian said, a teasing note in his voice.

"Why am I going to have even more fun tomorrow?" I asked, feeling a bit wary.

"You'll see," he said enigmatically. "I promise it's not anything bad or naughty." He paused for a moment. "Well, nothing that's too naughty, at least."

I had to admit, I was quite intrigued. Something that was "nothing that's too naughty"? I really wanted to know what it was. "I'm making sure you don't drink more than a glass of alcohol."

"I won't drink that much," he assured me. "And maybe we'll go somewhere that isn't populated by humans."

I gulped. Walking into a secret Moroi and dhampir club?

I knew that the Moroi and dhampirs had secret clubs away from the rest of humans. Seeing as we might get suspicious if uniformly pale and tall people were hanging around, I could see why. I wondered if those secret vampire hangouts had feeders, and shuddered.

"And there won't be feeders in sight at least," Adrian clarified, which didn't make me feel much better.

"Fine," I grumbled. I wasn't too thrilled about having to walk into a place full of Moroi and dhampirs, although I liked to think that I'd become more open-minded in the past few months. _Or fraternizing with evil creatures of the night too much,_ that Alchemist voice warned, but I forced it down. There was nothing wrong with being friendly and social with my charges and my boyfriend.

Something occurred to me, and I frowned. "Then how are Jill and everyone else going to get in? You didn't say anything about us being alone."

"Wouldn't dream of it," he said sarcastically. "All vampires over age thirteen are admitted."

"_Please_ don't tell me they serve alcohol to minors," I said. Jill and alcohol didn't sound like a good mix, considering how she was when she suffered Adrian's hangovers through the bond.

"They don't," he said. I could practically hear him rolling his green eyes over the phone. "Sage, I wouldn't take you somewhere like that."

I sighed. "But what am I supposed to wear?"

There was silence on the other end. "Huh. I never thought of that. Dress in something that's fun and not business attire."

I ignored his jab on my Alchemist clothes – we did have to look businesslike and professional, after all. "How am I supposed to get a dress in twenty-four hours?" I asked, feeling panicky.

"Shopping," Adrian said. "I have to go now. Time to continue with my homework."

I wondered how his "art studio" was coming along, but held my questions. "See you tomorrow."

"I'll…talk to you with more details," Adrian said, a slight edge to his voice. Click.

I sat back down on my bed. Great. Shopping. I could tell this was going to be lots of fun.

* * *

"You should totally wear that," Angeline said, pointing at a dress to my right.

I lifted up the hanger and stared. It was as red as my Greek Halloween costume, but with a skirt that ended about four inches above my knees, and a plunging V-neckline. "Are you serious? I wouldn't be caught dead in that."

Jill shook her head. "Angeline, that's…not something people usually wear," she said to her.

Angeline crossed her arms and tilted her head to the side. Her blond hair tumbled out of the loose ponytail she'd tied it up into. "Then when do people wear it?"

Jill pursed her lips, and shook her head. "I don't think it's appropriate to wear, so just leave it at that."

"But I want to know," Angeline insisted as we walked past more racks of dresses.

"I just want to finish shopping so I can go back to school," I grumbled.

"So you can go finish your Calculus BC homework?" Eddie muttered. I glared at him, and he shrugged. "Sorry."

That was a snarky comment unlike Eddie, so I let that go. "That would be better than dress shopping," I muttered.

"Have you never been dress shopping in your life?" Jill asked, sounding shocked.

"Well…" Did saying shopping for a Christmas dress when I was about five count? "No, not really."

Even Angeline stared at me. "Even I've been dress shopping a few times since I've come here."

Now I really felt uncomfortable. "Can we just find a dress and go?"

"No!" Jill and Angeline said in unison. They shared a look.

"Angeline, find some dresses and make sure they're appropriate," Jill ordered.

The dhampir rolled her eyes. "I know what's appropriate and what's not." _Not from the dress you just suggested_, I thought.

"How about this one?" Jill asked, holding up a hanger. A strapless champagne evening gown hung from it, with a full length skirt.

I studied it but shook my head. "Eh."

"Well, it is pretty dressy for going out to a club," she agreed and put it back.

"Do I even need to buy a dress? I'm sure I have a dress hanging around somewhere," I said as we continued moving through the store.

Jill and Angeline nodded. "All your clothes are so boring," Angeline said bluntly as she held up a white off-the-shoulder dress. I shook my head. "And bland."

Jill raised an eyebrow at Angeline but said, "Sydney, your wardrobe would be nice for business meetings or school, but for a club…you need to wear something that pops."

I groaned. "No red!"

"We'll find something else then," Jill said, "but no bland colors. That's not negotiable."

We kept moving through the store, but none of the dresses Jill or Angeline suggested seemed to be a dress I wanted to buy. Eddie was looking more and more bored by the minute, and I could sympathize.

I was about to suggest that we at least move on to another store when Jill suddenly ran over to a rack and held a dress up. "You have to try this on, and I don't care if you don't want to wear it."

I stared at it. It had a slightly curved sweetheart neckline, and the color was a rich emerald green that rivaled Adrian's eyes. The material seemed to glitter under the store lights. The flowing skirt looked like it would hang down to around my knees.

"It's very beautiful," I admitted. It was such a pretty dress that I wasn't sure if I'd do it justice. I thought it was a lot better than that red dress I'd worn for Halloween.

Jill held the dress out to me. "Try it on."

I reluctantly left my purse and went into the dressing room. I pulled on the dress and then walked out.

Jill's eyes widened. "You look gorgeous in that dress," she said, and there was a slight dreamy tone to her voice. "You should wear colors like that more often."

I frowned. It didn't sound like Jill to say something like that, and I had a hunch that some of Adrian's thoughts were rolling over to her via the bond and she was voicing them. "Thanks, Jill. If it was a few shades lighter, it'd match your eyes."

"You're definitely getting that," Angeline said, "even if the red dress looks better."

I held back a shudder.

"What about shoes?" Jill asked.

I groaned and paced. "Not more shopping! It took forever to find this. I already have heels."

"But what about jewelry?" Jill asked.

"I already have jewelry," I protested, pointing at my gold cross necklace. Eddie looked like he was about to respond, but was cut off.

"That does not go with the dress," Jill complained. "We're getting something else."

I shook my head and went back into the dressing room to change out of the dress. When I was back in my normal clothes, I stepped out and purchased the dress at a counter.

* * *

Eddie offered to drive us to the club the following night, so I reluctantly allowed him to use Latte. Angeline sat in the front with him, and I sat with Jill in the back.

We were all really dressed up, since we were going to a club that required some type of formal wear. Even Eddie was wearing a white button-up and slacks.

Since we were going into a Moroi-dhampir club, everyone had decided that we needed to use spirit to conceal me and Jill. Adrian still had the spirit-charmed bracelets, so he would give those to us when we arrived at the club.

Ten minutes later, we arrived at the club. It was called the Night Star, which I guessed was a hint for the dhampirs and Moroi that it was a vampire night club. Although the dhampirs and Moroi lived on a nocturnal schedule, I was guessing those that went to the night clubs had had to adjust to a daylight schedule.

My breath caught at the sight when I saw Adrian after I stepped out of the car. He was dressed in a very neat white dress shirt and black slacks, with a blue tie that contrasted nicely with his amazing green eyes. _He just looked so amazing_, I thought. Eddie locked the door and we strode towards Adrian.

"Are you all ready to…"

His words trailed off as he took me in. If I blushed, I'm sure I would've been as red as a rose by now. "Do I look that bad?" I asked.

"Sydney….you're so beautiful," he breathed, taking my hand.

I looked down, and felt some color rush into my cheeks. I wished that my hair was down so I could cover my cheeks, but Jill had insisted on pinning it up into a loose bouffant. I knew he would always see me as beautiful, but I still had a hard time believing it.

I slid on the spirit charmed bracelet that Adrian handed to me with a sigh. I wished I could've worn the charm bracelet Adrian had given to me, but I had to make do with this bracelet.

Adrian took my hand and led me to the entrance. I felt nervous but after some scrutinizing of my face, the bouncer let me in.

The inside of the club was dark, with lots of candles scattered around the dance floor and some modern-looking chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. With the Moroi's and dhampirs' excellent senses, there would be no need for bright lights the way humans needed them. I felt like I couldn't see anything at first, but as my eyesight adjusted to the lighting, I could see a lot better.

"To your left," Adrian quietly instructed, and guided me over to a table for two.

"What about the others?" I asked.

"They'll be fine. Eddie can be their chaperone," he said.

"I just hope Angeline won't take it into her head to drink," I murmured.

Adrian laughed. "Eddie's probably taking them to the room for minors. As in, literally under 18."

"I thought the legal drinking age was 21," I countered, smoothing the skirt of my dress.

He shrugged, but I could tell that he was studying my dress, even in the dim lighting. "Hey, we're technically adults."

"Please tell me there's something with caffeine I can drink," I said, casting a look at the refreshment table.

He scoffed. "Sage, this is a club. I'm sure they'll have juice and water, but I doubt there'll be any caffeine."

I groaned. "Great. Just great."

"Are you hungry?" he asked, changing the subject. I shook my head. "Then let's dance."

I tilted my head to listen to the music. It was a slow song, which made me think that it was something from the 80's or 90's. I nodded, and he pulled me to my feet.

We got to the dance floor, and he lightly placed his left hand around my waist. I slid my hand into his, and soon we were dancing.

"You look gorgeous in that dress," Adrian murmured softly into my ear as we danced. "It matches my eyes."

"You can thank Jill for helping me choose the dress," I said as we spun around the dance floor. It wasn't like waltz or anything, but at least it wasn't like how my fellow humans danced at school dances.

"The red dress was nice too," he mused, "since you looked so fiery and full of fire, but this dress makes you look beautiful too."

I smiled at him, and leaned my head on his chest. I could feel his strong, steady heartbeat fluttering against me.

We danced for two more songs, but then I was getting thirsty. I wandered over to the refreshments table, and spotted a drink that looked like coffee in paper cups.

_Why would they put coffee in a paper cup?_ I wondered as I picked it up. _Why not a mug?_ I took a sip.

It tasted like the most amazing coffee in the world, with cream and…something else. What on earth was that? Was that what made the coffee taste so good? My senses were waking up after just a sip. I wasn't sure if I'd want to go back to drinking my vanilla skinny lattes at Spencer's, as good as they were.

I sucked down the entire cup, feeling a little lightheaded as I did, and reached for another cup. I sucked down half of it, and I felt warm all over. Was the coffee that hot? I wondered. I could see Adrian had sat down at a table about two feet away from me, and I started walking towards him.

Whoa. Why was my balance so off? I swayed unsteadily on my heels, trying to keep a grip on my cup so I wouldn't spill the contents over my dress. Who would want to ruin such a beautiful dress?

My head spun as I tentatively took another step. The candles around the room seemed to be glowing different colors. It wasn't impossible but-

My train of thought was broken as I stumbled and nearly spilled my coffee. I saw a figure dart out of their seat towards me. A few seconds later, I felt someone's arms go around me.

"Easy, Sage," Adrian's voice said. "Why is your balance so off?"

"Adriannn!" I slurred, feeling a smile come over my lips as I turned around to face him. "You're here!"

His eyes were full of shock. "Sage, you seem really enthusiastic."

"What's there not to be happy about?" I asked. I was just so happy to see him. There couldn't be anything wrong with the world right now.

"Have you been drinking?" he asked, sounding a bit wary. "Because you're acting like someone who had a bit too much to drink."

"I haven't drunk anything the whole night," I slurred, nearly tipping over again but Adrian caught me. "Nothing except a cup and a half of coffee."

He peered at the cup in my hand, and then looked at me very closely. His eyes flashed with understanding…but of what? "That isn't coffee."

"You're lying," I accused, pointing at him with my free hand.

"It's Kahlua, Sage. Packed with sugar and coffee flavor."

"So?" I demanded. "Coffee is good! I wish I could drink nothing but coffee for the rest of my life. It's the best thing in the world!"

Adrian winced, and I noticed that some of the other patrons were looking over at me quite oddly. "I'm not being that loud," I continued.

"Sydney, you just drank alcohol. With sugar," he emphasized.

I shrugged and tried to drink the rest of the Kahlua, but Adrian took the cup away from me. "I want to finish," I protested. "Let me finish it! Sugar makes insulin go up and can be turned into glucose."

He shook his head and guided me over to a chair.

"I don't want to sit," I complained as he gently pushed me onto the chair. "It's really warm in here. I wanna go outside."

"Maybe you should wait a bit until you're…not so drunk," he said.

"I'm not drunk," I said indignantly. God, my head was really starting to spin a little. "Maybe you should come over here and kiss me."

He looked like his jaw was going to drop. "No, Sage."

"Adriannn, come over here," I said petulantly. "Kiss me."

He put his hand to his head, and sighed. He closed his eyes like he was concentrating really hard and then I heard his phone ring.

"Who's calling you right now? Is she pretty?" I slurred, leaning over the table.

"It's just Jill," he said, giving me a really strange look as he picked up his phone. When he spoke into his phone, his words were unintelligible, and then he shut his phone.

"C'mon, Sydney. We're going home," he said as he pulled me to my feet.

"I don't wanna go to Amberwood," I complained as he gently maneuvered me through the crowd of Moroi and dhampirs and out the door.

"I'm taking you to my apartment," he said as we stepped onto the curb and he opened the door of his Mustang. "Can you get in by yourself?"

"I'm fine!" I almost yelled as I got into the car. "And why can't I drive?"

"Sydney, if you drive in your current state, you're going to crash us into a ditch," he said before he shut the door and got into the driver's seat.

* * *

A few minutes later, Adrian pulled up to the curb and hurried out of the car to the other side. "Careful, or you'll bump your head," he warned.

I tottered unsteadily in my heels as he locked his Mustang and then led me into his apartment.

"I wanna lie down and sleep," I complained as he unlocked his door.

"You can sleep on the couch after I get you some water," he said as he ushered me into his door.

"But I wanna sleep on the bed," I said, wobbling unsteadily. "The couch won't be comfortable."

"Couch," Adrian said decisively. I found myself in his arms, and gasped. He carried me over to his couch and gently put me down. "I'll get you some water."

I looked around the living room, feeling woozy. His paintings were still around, but in my addled state, they all looked like blobs of color.

And now that I was alone with Adrian…I hit upon an idea. He came back with the water, and I took the glass, sucking it all down.

"Better?" he asked.

I said, "I'd feel even better if you'd go into your room with me."

He looked truly shocked. His stunning green eyes were wide with shock. "I…did not just hear that. I must truly be going crazy."

"Didn't you hear me? I said I wanted you to go into your room with me and sleep with me," I said crossly.

He looked like I'd dumped a bucket of cold water on him, but tried to recover with his usually witty banter. "Under normal circumstances, you inviting me to the bedroom would be the highlight of my day."

"Isn't it nighttime right now?" I interrupted.

He sighed. "The point is, you are really drunk right now. I'll call Jackie and make sure that you get an exception, because I don't think you can return to Amberwood in your current state. And no, we are not going to my room."

"Finee," I said, crossing my legs. "But I want to go to your room."

"Just go to sleep," he said.

Muttering to myself, I stepped out of my heels and curled up on the sofa. Adrian returned with a soft cashmere blanket and draped it over me.

"Good night, lily girl," he murmured, kissing my cheek.

I closed my eyes and felt myself drifting off, but I thought I heard him whisper, "I love you" into my ear very softly.

* * *

**Author's note**: Recognize any of those quotes? ;D I actually wrote most of this chapter yesterday when I finished my homework (and a little while procrastinating...). I wonder where those quotes will show up in _The Indigo Spell_, but I kinda hope that they'll pop up in something like the scenario I put them in. I decided to put up a chapter today, since today is a special day, so enjoy this chapter (: And reviews/ideas will forever be appreciated!


	14. A Hangover and More Magic

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 14 A Hangover and More Magic

When I opened my eyes the next morning, I couldn't recognize my surroundings. _Where _am_ I? _I wondered. God, my head hurt so much. I rolled over, surprised to find myself in a bed, and then nudged something warm. My eyes widened in shock. "What on earth…"

I was shocked to see that it was Adrian who slept next to me, and he was in nothing but his boxers. I felt my cheeks grow warm. _It wasn't possible for something inappropriate to have happened between me and Adrian_, I tried to reason. But why was I in Adrian's apartment to begin with?

My memory of last night was dim, which troubled me. My terrible headache wasn't helping any. Suddenly I remembered why and just wanted to crawl back into the bed with shame. I'd drunk something that tasted a lot like coffee….and then I remembered dimly, that Adrian had said, "It's Kahlua, Sage. Packed with sugar and coffee flavor." Good God. _I'd gotten drunk_. I put my head in my hands, wishing I could chase away my feelings of shame. I, Sydney Katherine Sage, had gotten _drunk_ and ended up in my _boyfriend's bed_.

I felt Adrian stir beside me and then he sat up, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. I turned to look at him, and felt my heart race. Was he _always_ this good-looking in the morning, even just waking up? His green eyes were hazy from sleep. "Morning, Sage. Have you recovered from last night?"

"If I didn't know what you were talking about, I might assume you're talking about a wild party," I murmured, holding my head. "But my head really hurts."

Adrian sprang out of bed with his fast Moroi reflexes, and pulled on a white shirt and jeans. I was a little disappointed that he'd put a shirt on again, and mentally chided myself for wanting to see him shirtless. "I've got the perfect hangover cure."

"Is it Tylenol?" I asked, feeling quite cross.

"Something better," he answered as he reappeared, with a cup of pomegranate gelato in one hand and a glass of water in the other.

I reached for the cup eagerly. Who cared about the calories right now? Maybe something sweet and cold would chase away my horrible hangover. I consumed the gelato in less than three minutes and gulped down the water.

"It helped a little," I mused after I set down the glass of water. I looked up to see that Adrian's eyes were on me, an amused expression on his face. "What?" I was starting to wish I hadn't eaten the gelato because it was fattening, but it'd tasted so good…

"I didn't know you liked pomegranate that much," he remarked. "I should have gotten more for you."

I looked at the time on his clock and gasped. "It's nine in the morning?"

"Sage, it's the New Year," he remarked wryly. "And speaking of which…"

I looked up and he kissed my lips. My eyes fluttered closed, and I pulled him closer as he kissed down to my neck.

He pulled away and whispered, "Happy New Year's."

I couldn't help the smile that was spreading across my face. I just felt so happy whenever he kissed me.

"We should probably get you back to Amberwood," he said, sounding disappointed that I had to go.

"Do I really have to go?" I asked.

He sighed. "It's either that, or answer a million questions. Hopefully Jill won't have told the entire gang you had a bit too much to drink…"

"Hey, it's not like I drank on purpose," I protested.

Adrian gave me his most charming smile, and I sort of wanted to melt – if that was actually possible, of course. "You'd never drink on purpose. But it looked like coffee, so of course you had to try it…"

I fought the urge to roll my eyes and stood, smoothing out the gorgeous green dress I still wore. Amazingly, it was only a little wrinkled. I thought it would've been a crumpled mess by now.

"Where's Latte?" I asked in horror, suddenly remembering that I must've left Latte at the nightclub. It wasn't a flashy or new car, but it was still my baby. If anything happened to it…

Adrian coughed and I arched a brow at him, waiting for him to respond. "Eddie drove it back to Amberwood, according to Jill. No worries, I'm sure Angeline didn't trash the car or invite some strange dhampir into it."

"She better not have," I murmured. Angeline had gotten a lot more responsible lately, but still…

He pulled me to my feet and towards the door. "I'll drive you back now. And don't worry, I called Jackie and asked her to get an exception for you."

I suppressed the urge to sigh. That moment when my boyfriend and my witch teacher were on first-name terms...

* * *

Adrian deposited me in the parking lot of Amberwood and gave me a goodbye kiss in the car before driving away. I regarded him wistfully as he drove out of the parking lot, wondering when I would see him again. My head still throbbed from the cups of Kahlua I had drunk last night.

I walked into the lobby of my dorms, where Mrs. Weathers was working. Luckily, I was covering up my pretty dress with a trench jacket, or I would have gotten lots of questions about my whereabouts last night. She gave me a nod, and then pointed to behind me. "Your brother has been waiting here for fifteen minutes."

I sighed and turned around to see Eddie standing near the door. His hazel eyes were unreadable, but his body language wasn't very friendly. "Eddie, what are you doing here?" I asked as I crossed the lobby to him.

"Looking for you," Eddie said coolly as we walked outside together. "Seems like you were having a little too much fun last night."

"What are you talking about?" I demanded. Jill couldn't possibly have told Eddie why I hadn't come home with them, right? That was just...

"Easy to figure out. You didn't come home, and last I heard you were spotted with Adrian. Just put two and two together, and you must've been having fun with Adrian at his apartment." Anger laced Eddie's words as he spoke, and I could hear the quotation marks around "fun."

I couldn't believe the self-righteous tone Eddie was taking with me. Who did he think he was kidding? My head ached with every breath i took, making it hard to think straight, and the way Eddie was talking down to me? Unbearable. It was unacceptable. Eddie wasn't acting at all like himself today. "It's none of your business what I was doing! And I wasn't having fun with Adrian, as you put it," I retorted.

"Did you even think about Jill? What Adrian does affects her through the bond!" Eddie exclaimed in a low voice. "I can't believe how inconsiderate you were of her. And if you two were screwing around last night, it would've really affected her. How could you be so irresponsible?"

I was so tired of the way he was talking down to me, like I was some rebellious teenager. I was the responsible one around here. I was the one who handled things that went wrong. I understood that his job to guard the Dragomir princess to ensure the Moroi queen's safety - especially following that threat a few months ago - was important.

And yet, how dare he call me "irresponsible" and "inconsiderate"?

Anger flared in me, and without thinking I hissed, "I wouldn't be talking about being inconsiderate of Jill if I were you, Eddie."

"How could you say that?" Eddie demanded, his voice full of shock. "I would do anything to protect her! Unlike -"

"You are so judgmental," I snapped, past my breaking point. Rational thinking was utterly impossible now. "First, you accuse me and Adrian of doing things that aren't appropriate when we never did anything inappropriate. Second, you have eyes but you can't see what's right in front of you. Jill likes you, but you can't see it because when you're not guarding Jill, you're off fooling around with Angeline. So I wouldn't be telling me that I'm being irresponsible if I were you, Eddie. Take a look at yourself before telling me what to do. I'm always the one cleaning up the messes if something happens around here."

Eddie's hazel eyes widened, but they were full of shock instead of cool anger now. "Jill...likes me?"

I threw my hands into the air. "Use your eyes and your judgment Eddie." With that, I turned my back on him and stalked off.

I was almost shaking with anger in my heels as I stormed up the stairs and up to the third floor. Guys could be so incredibly ignorant and dense. When had Eddie begun acting so judgmental and self-righteous? And I spoke the truth. Whenever Eddie and Angeline had some free time (usually when I was studying in the library at the same time as Jill) they often snuck off and did God knows what. Angeline often came back with her cheeks bright red and with her clothes in disarray.

_How can he not see what's before his eyes?_ I wondered, still wound up with anger as I tossed off my heels and my dress. I changed into a pair of slacks and a white button down blouse. I wondered if I could blame my outburst on the wicked hangover that was still pounding in my head, but I doubted it. This outburst had been a while in the making.

Irresponsible... I wish that was a word that applied to me. I was as far from irresponsible as I could be.

* * *

My cell phone rang a few minutes later, startling me out of my daze and I picked up. "Hello?"

"Ms. Melbourne, please come to my classroom at once."

I stared at the phone in confusion before putting it back to my ear. It was Ms. Terwilliger. "But ma'am, it's still winter break. It's the first day of the new year." School didn't start for another four days."

"I'm aware of that, but this is an emergency." Ms. Terwilliger sounded extremely worried on the other end.

I suppressed a sigh. Hopefully it wasn't a caffeine emergency. "I'll be right down."

When I arrived in Ms. Terwilliger's classroom, Marcus Finch was sitting with her and talking.

I came to a halt, my mouth undoubtedly hanging open. "What on..."

"Come in," Ms. Terwilliger said, and I warily obeyed. She flicked her finger at the door and it slammed shut behind me before locking itself. I jumped. "Don't worry, dear, I'm not planning on keeping you prisoner here."

"Define 'prisoner,'" I murmured, crossing the classroom to stand beside Marcus.

Ms. Terwilliger's blue eyes lit up with amusement for a moment before she said, "From what I understand, you met Marcus a few days ago, right?"

I nodded, feeling uneasy about the whole thing. _Why is Marcus here? He's supposed to be in hiding_.

"And I told her that I use magic to a small degree," Marcus said, tapping his finger against the desk. I looked down and saw that there was a spellbook on the desk he was sitting at. It was leather-bound and looked new, like the one Ms. Terwilliger had given me. "She told me that you said she has a natural affinity for magic."

"Can't you feel it?" Ms. Terwilliger asked him. "That sense of power...it's so strong, even a weak magic user would be able to sense it."

"Yes," Marcus agreed, his blue eyes on me. I looked at the floor, flustered. "I can sense it, and my magic is a little below your level, Jackie."

"It's actually above mine, but close," Ms. Terwilliger said. She then turned to me. "I have told you that you must protect yourself from my older sister, Ravenna?"

I had actually forgotten, but now the conversation from just a few days ago flowed through my mind, and I nodded.

"It's lucky you told her about Ravenna," Marcus said, sounding deeply disapproving. "If you hadn't..." He shuddered and made the sign against evil on his shoulder.

Ms. Terwilliger turned to me. "Marcus came to Palm Springs after his Moroi friend contacted him. But he had other reasons. He caught a glimpse of Ravenna in downtown LA - close to where you saw her last time - and she had some young witches and warlocks following her."

"How can you tell?" I asked.

Ms. Terwilliger frowned. "Oh, that's right. I never taught you how, but you won't need to know. Once you practice magic more extensively, you will be able to 'sense' if magic users are around and how strong they are. Marcus got the 'sense' that there were ten with her at the time. She probably has more. I have never heard of those magic users he described to me, but if it's true...my sister has grown stronger than I thought. We don't have much time left."

"Much time for what?" I cried. "You've said she wants to gather more magic users and drain their magic."

"I'm scared for you," Ms. Terwilliger said solemnly. "I've never met anyone who has had magic as strong as yours. I'm worried that when Ravenna senses your presence, she will come for you and try to turn you to her side."

"I will never fight for the dark side," I said adamantly. "Not for as long as I live."

Marcus exhaled and he shared a look with my teacher. "That's a good thing I suppose," he said, "but then...when Ravenna finds she can't make you come to her, she will kill you to claim your magic. I wouldn't be surprised if she's killed off the magic users that I saw her with..."

Fear washed over me. I did not want to be killed for my magic. I still wasn't sure how to command my magic all that well. "Then what will I do?" I asked, hiding my fear and anxiety.

"I feel that Ravenna is getting closer every day," Ms. Terwilliger said mysteriously, "and yet...closer but not close enough. We will have to train you in offensive magic very quickly. If you had trained sooner, it would help a lot. Weekly lessons aren't enough anymore. They must be on a daily basis if you are to protect yourself from Ravenna, and she's had decades of training in the dark arts."

I swallowed. "Then what now?"

Marcus leaned forward, a gleam in his blue eyes that I didn't like at all. "Well, first we'll start off with the lightning spell. It will be enough to shock any opponent, regardless of their power level..."

* * *

**Author's note**: Hello everyone! :D It's been exactly a month since I posted a chapter. Sorry about that everyone :( But I've been super busy with school, and I found it really hard to write this chapter because I've forgotten a lot of the stuff I already wrote (lame...an author forgetting the stuff she wrote). Anyway, I've also been struggling with writer's block again. I've seen some pretty good Bloodlines fanfics out there, and I finally felt like I could write this *somewhat filler* chapter (personally, I think it sucks but yeah). More ideas will DEFINITELY help get this story get back on track. REVIEWS/IDEAS VERY, VERY GREATLY APPRECIATED :) And I want to thank everyone who's followed this story and been waiting for me to finally get up another chapter! Thanks to _Darrian_ for the idea of having Sydney get mad at Eddie. Happy Thanksgiving!


	15. Complications

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bloodlines.

* * *

Ch. 15 Complications

"Try to use the combined water and lightning spell on me," Ms. Terwilliger instructed at the end of our magic lesson with Marcus.

I swallowed down a gulp. "Is that really necessary?"

"You can't be afraid of hurting someone else," Ms. Terwilliger said, almost reading my mind. _Was that something she'd learned as a result of magic?_ "I'll be blunt about Ravenna. She's only a few years older than me, but I knew her quite well. When we were children, there was a great darkness in her that I never saw until we grew older. She often tormented or bullied other children. When we started learning magic at the age of 10, she was very advanced and learned complicated spells. You mustn't be afraid of her."

I cleared all thoughts from my mind, which wasn't an easy thing to do. I recited the incantation, while throwing up a pearl and a piece of granite at Ms. Terwilliger. A bolt of lightning ran through the granite and transferred to the pearl, which then released a jet of water tingling with electricity. The water raced at Ms. Terwilliger, but a pulsating shield sprang up in front of her and easily deflected the water/electricity.

"That's very good improvement, but you need to be better, if we are to get rid of Ravenna," Marcus murmured. I still didn't get why he wanted to be around.

"But why do we have to get rid of her?" I asked, feeling like a little child.

"She's taking innocent lives," Marcus said flatly. Something flashed in his dark blue eyes that were almost unreadable, but I knew enough to identify it. Pain. "Those young witches and warlocks she's convinced to follow her? They did nothing to her, but she'll kill them anyway. Nothing will stop her. If there's something in her way, she will crush it under her foot."

This description of Ravenna's coldness scared me, and I shivered. "Why?" I murmured.

Ms. Terwilliger shrugged. "After college, we lost contact, which I thought was for the best at the time. I don't know why or when she became so powerful. But every time she uses dark magic, her soul will shrink and if she continues…well, she won't have a soul left."

I shivered. How could anyone become so cold-hearted and empty?

"Lessons are over for today," Ms. Terwilliger said as I hopped off my desk and got to my feet. "But I want you to come back at the same time tomorrow. We'll discuss an alternative time once school starts up."

Marcus followed me out, much to my surprise. "Why are you even here?" I asked him warily as we walked down the school halls. No one seemed to even give him a second glance, which surprised me. Then I realized their eyes were avoiding him like he was just air, and I wondered if that was an effect of the Indigo Spell.

"I needed to get in touch with Jackie again," Marcus said easily, "and…well…I did want to help teach you magic."

"Why?" I asked, feeling confused.

Marcus looked uneasy and coughed as we exited the building and walked out into the blinding California sunshine. It wasn't that much colder, even though it was winter time.

Marcus paused, his blue eyes incredibly distant like he was worlds away. "I heard a little bit of humans using magic when I was still an Alchemist, four years ago. It feels like an entire lifetime has passed since then." He paused for a moment before he turned to look at me. "Because magic isn't natural for us, we must pull it from the world. For the Moroi, their ability with magic is inborn, which makes it easier for them to use magic. And yet…at times, we can be more powerful than them. The Moroi can only use elemental magic, and spirit, which is very draining for the user and will lead to devastating long-term effects."

"Hold on. How do you even know about spirit to begin with?" I asked, feeling suspicious. He'd dropped out of the Alchemists four years ago. It had only been within the past year that the Moroi and Alchemists learned about spirit. I flashed back to my first conversation with Marcus and his time in the Re-education Center. "We only learned about it this year. If you were no longer part of the Alchemists…"

"I have my ways of getting information," he answered, "but I hacked into the Alchemist data base earlier this year. I do it periodically to get data updates, but I can't do it too often or it'll raise red flags. I didn't realize that the pills had silver charmed with spirit at the time. I put two and two together, especially after I read about the case regarding Vasilisa Dragomir and her restoration of Dimitri Belikov."

My mind was spinning in circles. Marcus was seriously resourceful. He'd broken out of a Re-education Center, left the Alchemists and stayed hidden from them, and hacked into the Alchemist data base (which was notoriously hard to hack in to. Marcus's hacking was the first time I'd ever heard of it being hacked into).

I smiled briefly at him, impressed despite myself. "You're quite interesting to talk to, Marcus."

"I do my best," he said, a rare smile crossing his face. He looked quite gorgeous when he smiled, and it was such a change compared to his usual seriousness and moroseness. His smile faded as he added, "And someday…I hope you will break free from the Alchemists, Sydney. I can't stand seeing you doing everything they ask of you and you blindly obeying."

My good mood vanished, and I glared at him. He was insinuating that I was just blindly subscribing to the Alchemists' way of thinking. "Marcus, listen. I respect you and deeply admire how you managed to escape from the Alchemists, which is a truly impossible feat."

Actually, I wished I could break free of the Alchemists, but I wasn't telling him that. "But as for suggesting that I just blindly listen to what the Alchemists believe…that's not true. As an Alchemist, I believe that humans must be protected from the existence of all vampires, good and bad alike. If they learn about the Strigoi…" I shivered, recalling the crazy Liam at the Re-education Center I'd visited, a human who had worked for the Strigoi because he thought that he would be turned into one someday. "Our fellow humans must be protected."

Marcus looked at me intently, his blue eyes unreadable. I felt a shiver go through me as I wondered, again, why he had been shipped off to a Re-education Center to begin with and why he was vehemently opposed to my being an Alchemist. After all, what did his leaving the Alchemists have to do with me?"

Finally, he sighed. "If that's really how you feel about the Alchemists…"

I doubted he was going to let this go anytime soon, but decided to remain quiet just for the sake of peace.

* * *

A few days passed, and it was soon time for school. I had actually missed being school. It gave me a sense of purpose, like I had a better purpose than just passing myself as a high school student to keep an eye on Jill.

Much to my surprise, Adrian didn't try to contact me after he had dropped me off at Amberwood. He hadn't even tried contacting me in my dreams. It wasn't like him to not contact me at all. I'd tried to call him a few times but had only gotten voice mail. I uneasily wondered in my AP Chemistry class if he was avoiding me for some reason.

_He's probably busy with college_, that reasonable voice in me said_. It's not like he'll always have free time to spend with you and the "family." And he can't talk to you in your dreams because of the strain spirit puts on him. That's probably it_.

Over time, I had learned that although spirit was a wonderful and amazing element, it came with certain downsides. Spirit users could be prone to depression, and if they used it too much…it would eventually lead to insanity.

I shuddered at the thought of Adrian, my strong, funny boyfriend, becoming insane from spirit. Still, it was very unusual and left me very unsettled.

I called him again during lunch on my first day back from winter break, when I excused myself from Kristin and Julia to go to the bathroom. I had avoided being around Eddie after my outburst when I'd come back from Adrian's.

All I got was Adrian's voice mail. Again. "I know how devastated you must be to miss me, but leave a message, and I'll try to ease your agony as soon as possible." I just hung up without leaving a message, feeling wounded.

The entire day passed without contact with him, which meant I had gone four days without Adrian. Four days without hearing his snarky quips and his voice. God, I missed him. How was it possible to miss someone so much? I'd never felt like this before.

I considered asking Jill what Adrian was up to, since they shared a psychic bond, but held myself back from asking. _Why should I ask him what's going on first? _I asked myself.

The other part of me desperately wanted to hear or see him. Even hearing what was going on with him through Jill was preferable to this silence.

I decided to make one more try at calling him before dinner. If he didn't pick up…well, I'd have to ask Jill.

To my delight, he picked up on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Adrian," I whispered. I felt so happy just hearing his voice. If only I could actually see him in person. "I've missed you so much."

"I miss you too, lily girl." There was silence between us, but I could hear loud noises in the background. Was that music I heard in the background?

_What's he doing?_ I wondered. "How-"

"Sage, I'm busy right now," Adrian interrupted, his voice sounding a bit tense and strained. "I'll catch up with you later, okay?"

"But when-"

_Beep_.

I stared at my cell phone in shock. Had he seriously just _hung up_ on me? Anger and disbelief radiated through me. There had been loud music in the background – I was sure of it now. Why would he be busy at a location with music? He took art classes at Carlton, so I seriously doubted loud music would be benefitting him.

Muttering darkly, I stormed down to the second floor of my dorm. Jill was alone in her room. She looked up at me. "Hey, Sydney."

"Where's everyone?" I asked, looking around. It was unusual that Jill would be alone and unguarded.

She sighed. "Eddie came to pick up Angeline five minutes ago. I guess they're going….to make out."

There was so much heartbreak and misery in her voice that my heart went out to her. "He's still going to do that with her after what I said to him?" I muttered.

Jill looked up at me, her green eyes full of confusion. "What are you talking about…?"

"Oh...after I came back from Adrian's on New Year's Day, I had a massive hangover. Eddie was calling me out for how irresponsible I was, doing inappropriate things with Adrian while you shared a bond with him. I lashed out and told him off for how he shouldn't be so judgmental and how you liked him but he was too blind to see it."

Jill's jaw dropped open. She was speechless for a few moments before she recovered herself. "You…yelled at Eddie?"

I gave her a rueful smile, feeling a bit ashamed of myself. I was Sydney Sage, master of controlling my emotions. "I'm not proud."

She actually smiled a little. It was the first time I'd seen an actual genuine smile on her that had no sadness to it. "That explains why Eddie has been acting weird around me lately…He hasn't been as vigilant and overprotective as he used to be, but he's still protective in a different way. He stopped doing his secret PDA with Angeline in front of me after New Year's Day, which is something I didn't see coming." She stopped to catch her breath from her rambling, her cheeks slightly flushed.

I raised my eyebrows. So Eddie was listening to what I'd said to him, harsh as my words might have sounded. Then I remembered my reason for coming, and I sighed. "Jill…do you know what Adrian's up to? He hasn't talked to me for a few days and he usually tries to keep in touch with me."

"Oh," Jill said, biting her lip and looking anxious. "For the past few days…well…he hasn't been feeling well. He's not sick or anything, he just feels kind of 'off.' I don't know how to explain it. I think it's from spirit."

"He's been using spirit a lot?" I asked, confused. It felt like forever since we had last spoken in our dreams.

"It's not a whole lot," Jill admitted, "but for most of his life, he's tried to avoid using it. Using spirit to reach out to you in your dreams and for compulsion…the past few months, it's been getting harder for him."

_Harder to do what?_ I wondered.

The door to Jill's room flew open and I jumped up in shock.

It was Angeline, and she was crying.

Jill and I stared at her in shock for a few moments before Jill recovered herself and ran over to Angeline. "What happened?"

"Eddie b-broke up w-with me!" Angeline wailed. Tears streamed down her cheeks from her blue eyes and she threw herself onto her bed.

Jill's mouth become a round o as she sank onto Angeline's bed and started patting her back. "There, there," she said, trying to be as soothing as possible. Angeline just kept crying and crying. Although she was very hot-headed and even bratty at times, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. She had genuinely liked Eddie, although she had come on very strongly when she tried flirting with him before they'd gotten together.

"I don't get why," Angeline whispered a few minutes later, her voice incredibly soft. "I thought we had a great relationship. But it turns out I liked him…more than he liked me." Her voice faded, and she rolled over onto her back to stare at the ceiling. Silent tears still slid down her cheeks.

I had a feeling _I_ had caused Angeline's break-up with Eddie. Not because I was the object of Eddie's affections, but because I had told him of Jill's feelings towards him. I felt horrible, and yet…Jill had suffered too, in all the months Eddie and Angeline had been dating.

* * *

When I closed my eyes that same night, tired after a long day at school, I dreamed that I was standing in a sunny meadow filled with flowers. The fragrant smell of flowers was in the air.

_Why am I here? I_ wondered, looking around and then down at myself. I was wearing a simple white shirt and jeans.

I scanned the area around me. There was a small forest nearby, but to my surprise, the trees were all different types – maples trees, redwood tries, rosewood trees, etc. _No forest has that many types of different trees_, I reasoned, frowning.

I was pretty sure this wasn't a spirit dream. The two times that Adrian had dream walked with me…I could "feel" the magic in those dreams. To me, it felt like it was a form of reality but not quite real life.

Right now, my dream didn't have the same feel as Adrian's dreams. This felt less like reality or waking life. In fact, it reminded me of the one time I had dreamed of being in a flowery field with Adrian.

I saw something move a few feet away from me, and I turned my head. I gasped.

Adrian was standing there, with his back to me. He had an easel in front of him, with a white canvas. Several paint palettes surrounded him and there were a lot of brushes strewn around him. As I watched him silently, he started painting the vague outlines of a slightly petite figure.

He turned around, and I was struck by the utter greenness of his eyes. "Sydney?" he asked, sounding stunned. "What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same question," I returned as I strode towards him.

"This isn't a spirit dream," Adrian murmured as he put down his paintbrush.

"I think we're both aware of that," I said dryly as I stood at his side and curiously looked at his easel. "What are you painting?"

Adrian coughed, looking distinctly uncomfortable. But why would he be uncomfortable with _me_? "I…just paint whatever's on my mind," he said at last.

I didn't have a lot of experience in social situations, but even I could tell that I was being lied to. _Why would Adrian lie to me?_ "Fine," I said coolly, trying to restrain my feelings of hurt and anger.

Something in his face seemed to soften and he took a step towards me. I wondered what he saw in my aura. "Sydney…"

I stepped back, away from him. I could see the hurt in his eyes, and I hated knowing that I was the one causing him pain.

But at the same time…there was a strange distance between us that hadn't been there before. He was causing me pain too.

We just looked at each other for a moment before I turned around and started walking in the opposite direction. Clouds blotted out the bright sun, which matched my mood. Soon I was walking through nothing but fog.

* * *

**Author's note**: Finally got another chapter up! It's hard to write since I'm struggling with writer's block with this story. I have a vague idea of where I want this storyline to go, but as for more specific ideas, not so much. Ideas are _greatly_ appreciated, and so are reviews :) If you send some ideas, you might see them in later chapters. So put in some ideas/reviews :D


	16. Author's note - not a real chapter

12/30/12

Author's note:

Hello everyone. It's been almost a month since I even updated this story. I'm not sure if I can keep writing this story. Whenever I try, I have a really bad case of writer's block. I have another week of break, so I might be able to write something, but I'm really not sure. I miss writing this story, but I simply don't know where to go with it from here, and I don't want to rush it and ruin the plot. Once school starts up again, it'll be almost impossible to write anything. I guess I'm just going to go on a hiatus for _A Golden Love_.

Hopefully sometime soon, I'll be able to write for this story again. I'll keep writing other stories. Maybe I'll be able to figure out what to write for this. It's not a permanent goodbye, just a temporary one. Once I get a chapter up, I'll remove this. If you have any ideas for this story, feel free to put them in. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and supported this story!

eveningstar1996


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